Building the Yellow Brick Road
by williamsangel88
Summary: Harry Potter, wizard and hero, never could have imagined what would happen when he rushed after his Godfather through the Veil. Now he was friends with the Summoning Toads, learning the secret arts of the Shinobi and hunting down another Voldemort wanna be. Strong Harry and a more perceptive Naruto. Warnings inside, first Naruto story so please be kind. ON HOLD, will update
1. Through the Veil

**Building the Yellow Brick Road**

**Summary: **Harry Potter, wizard and hero, never could have imagined what would happen when he rushed after his Godfather through the Veil. Now he was friends with the Summoning Toads, learning the secret arts of the Shinobi and hunting down another Voldemort wanna be. Strong Harry and a more perceptive Naruto.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Harry Potter or Naruto world's. I do own the rest of the world :P that's why I write FanFiction!

**Warnings: **Mention of abuse,language, violence and a super pervert

**Pairing: **not decided yet. Let me know who you'd like to see together. There will be boy/boy and girl/girl love in this fic, so if you don't like it, don't read it.

**Prologue  
Through the Veil**

Harry wondered why he didn't feel tired. He must have been running for hours now, not getting anywhere as the darkness kept spreading out in front of him. Maybe he should stop, but the young wizard quickly shook his head. What would that accomplish? Absolutely nothing. So he kept on running, waiting for the light to appear at the end of what appeared to be an endless tunnel.

Memories of why he was there in the first place were starting to fade away. The scene which had kept playing itself over and over inside his head had come to an halt. All Harry could see now were a pair of startled grey eyes as they disappeared before him. The young wizard stretched out his arm, the name that belonged to those eyes slowly dying on his tongue. He remembered pain and despair, a sudden wave of hope and relief, before numbness took over. That numbness now remained within him as hands brushed against his clothing, over and over again.

When the eyes faded completely the name suddenly came to him and he screamed it aloud at the empty and dark tunnel. "SIRIUS!" Harry squeezed his eyes shut as soft fabric passed over and through him, leaving his panting. The young wizard had finally stopped running, wanting to scream and cry in desperation as the memory of the night's events came flooding back.

The vision, which Harry now realised was a fake, and Umbridge who had threatened to torture him in her office in front of his friends and enemy's. How his friends accompanied him for the rescue mission and how he had let them to the Department of Mystery's. How he had cost them their youth and innocence even if Ron and Hermione had always been with him on his adventures. They had been attacked and in Neville's case tortured because he, Harry, had believed in the vision. His Godfather was dead because of him.

The fifteen year old cried in desperation as he realised what he had done, running after his Godfather through the Veil of Death. The Gryffindor could still feel Remus's desperate grab for his shirt, but it had come too late. Harry had already passed through, leaving everyone behind who had ever cared for him. The young wizard was clutching his knees close to his chest. Was this the end? Was this death? The endless dark tunnel which would go on and on? He would never see his mother or father at the end.

Harry looked up, almost startled by his own determination. If he was dead, then he could be reunited with his mother and father again and even have Sirius back. Beg him for forgiveness, all of them, for causing their deaths. He stood and continued on, walking first with uncertainty before making his mind up completely. It didn't seem to matter which was he went, as long as he went straight onwards. He would get there in the end. The Gryffindor was determent to see his parents and Godfather again.

Harry did not waver again. Someone clearly seemed to admire this because some time later (Harry wasn't quite sure how long he had been running as time seemed irrelevant in this place) a soft light began to appear in front of him. The strangest thing, Harry noticed, about death was that he actually started to feel tired and with each new step he took, he could feel pain in his legs. Even a stitch was slowly forming in his side as the Gryffindor continued to pant for air.

"Finally!" he cried out as he reached what seemed to be the end of the tunnel. "I'm… huh, did I miss a turn?" In front of him, or rather everywhere around him, huge frogs had gathered. The strangest thing was that they seemed to be wearing clothes, or rather jackets, and Harry could swear he saw a few with things as knives and pipes. There were a few stone statues and it almost felt like Harry had shrunk in size as giant butterbur leaves towered above him. "Don't tell me I landed in frog heaven. Someone is seriously having a laugh!"

That seemed to draw everyone's attention and all the frogs turned as one to look at him. The young wizard swallowed nervously and waved. "Uhm, hi," he said, feeling quite awkward. "I, uhh, I think something must have gone wrong. You see, I uhh I just died recently and now, while I was walking down the tunnel, I uhh…"

"What are you babbling about human?" one of the frogs said in a deep rumbling voice. He was a dark orange, like most of them, with a strange necklace and purple markings down his body. His body was covered in bandages.

Harry blushed and scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. If the uniforms and the various sizes of the frogs weren't bad enough, the fact that they could talk made Harry feel slightly uncomfortable and inferior. "Oh you have _got_ to be kidding me," he muttered, clearly in awe. "What is this, some kind of a dream? I thought I died! Department of Mystery's indeed…"

The frog hopped closer to him, inspecting the young wizard with a yellow beady eye. "Died? Ha! How could you have died, you're all skin and no muscle. Human's like you do not end up on the Mount Myouboku."

The way the frog said it made Harry feel very small and angry. Human's like him? "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" the Gryffindor said, hands on his hips and glare in place. "Sure in my younger years I ran away a lot, but that was five against one. I was heavily malnourished and often beaten for just being alive. Later on I have fought against, trolls and Acromantula, a Basilisk and even a werewolf. Not to mention that I've had a madman after me since I was born and re-entered the Wizarding World. So don't you dare tell me I'm weak and unable to defend myself. Sure I died, but I died trying to save my Godfather and later my friends. Bloody frogs," he muttered ending his rant.

He had enough of this world. If he had entered it through the tunnel then surely he could return by entering the tunnel again. Harry turned only to discover it had disappeared. "I think _he's_ the one having a laugh," one of the frogs muttered, but the Gryffindor was no longer paying attention. Where had it gone? Surely he had entered through a dark tunnel. It hadn't been his imagination. All there seemed to be left was a huge waterfall which felt the strangest type of water. "I just want to see my parents for the first time," he whispered, sinking to the floor and hands on his head in silent torment. "The universe really enjoys playing with me." All there was left for him to stare at were endless fields of giant butterbur leaves and the weird looking waterfall. Strange spikes which formed into mountains could be seen beyond.

"I think we've heard enough Gama," a new voice rumbled Harry out of his dark and miserable thoughts. "I will take the human to the elders." The Gryffindor turned to see a new frog standing next to the one now identified as Gama. He was huge, almost taller then the skyscrapers Harry had seen on TV. This huge frog has an aquamarine skin and yellow eyes with grey markings around them and what seemed to be two swords strapped to his back. "And we are Toads, not frogs."

The simple correction made Harry blink, not to sure if he knew the difference between the two amphibians. Sure Neville had a Toad, but it could have easily been a frog in Harry's eyes. "Sorry," he said. "More of an owl person myself."

The Toad let out a none commendable grunt before he gestured for Harry to follow him, taking long strides which made Hagrid's look like baby steps. Harry had to run to keep up with him. Whatever this place was, it seemed peaceful enough. The sky was a beautiful blue, making Harry almost wish he had his Firebolt with him. It almost reminded him of Wonderland and Harry wondered if he wasn't just asleep. He was already starting to miss Hedwig, who would have loved to follow him around as he raced trough the sky. Ron and Hermione, who were hopefully taken to the Hospital Wing by now to be treated together with Neville, Luna and Ginny. He wondered how Remus would survive the loss of his last best friend and the son of his first ever friend. Harry hoped that they (the Order) would support the werewolf and not let him take his own life out of grief or desperation.

And what about Voldemort? Would the Wizarding World be able to handle the Darkest Wizard since Grindlewald? They had done it before, but wizards and witches seemed to have the ability to screw things up. At least they would have to belief in Dumbledore now. The older wizard who had ignored him all year round, not even caring how he was coping with his first death of a comrade. At least the Headmaster had showed up to help his friends.

"Human," the Toad said suddenly, turning to look down at him as he kept walking.

"You can call me Harry," the Gryffindor said, feeling quite uncomfortable with being call 'human' all the time.

The Toad who had yet to introduce himself nodded. "Very well, Harii. You are about to meet the elders and I wish that you show some respect towards them. They might look old, but they still have fighting spirit and will not hesitate to discipline you if you show disrespect. Neither will I or anyone else who is present."

Harry nodded, jumping over a stone and landing lightly on his feet as he continued to run to keep up with the Toad. "Of course," the young wizard said. After a long calculating look, the Toad nodded and suddenly took Harry in his flipper. "This will be faster," was all the toad said before he hopped up high and hopped with ease towards the spiked mountain. Harry had to fight the urge to scream as they dropped, rising again at incredible speed. The Toad quickly hopped through an underground passage into a lair.

The toad suddenly stopped, dropping Harry on his own two feet again where the young wizard swayed a little to get his senses back. He might be used to flying his broomstick at a high speed, but being held by a frog was a completely different way of transport he was used to. "_What is this Gamahiro? Why have you brought a human here?_"

"_Ōjiji-sama, Nidaisengama, this human came to us by accident. Harii-san has told us he died in his world and travelled here trough the dark tunnel. We are unsure of what to do with him_," Gamahiro confessed to the three old toads.

The foreign words suddenly hit Harry and he stood uncertainly, staring up at the three old toads who were also dressed strangely. The two who were sitting lower then the oldest of the three seemed to be the first two advisors of some sort. One of them was a green toad with massive eyebrows and a goatee which reminded Harry both of Dumbledore and Karkarov. His high collared cape seemed to fall all around him as he sat before the young wizard. The second one seemed to be a female toad and was also green but with purple markings. She was wearing the same high collared cape as the male toad. They were both tiny though, like they would fit on his shoulder. Harry felt the awesome power radiating off of them.

The oldest toad, the one sitting high up in the middle, was the most impressive one so far. He seemed to be wearing a scalar's hat with the biggest crystal ball on top that would even make professor Trelawney green with envy. He was wearing a large, beaded necklace with the strangest symbol on the biggest one. He was squinting down at Harry, making the young wizard feel incredibly exposed. This one had no markings or clothing like the other toads, and Harry could already feel the respect for this great toad growing inside of him. He still felt a bit awkward though, as the language had changed somewhere along the way. Maybe this was Toad Language.

"_He looks slightly out of it_," the toad continued and Harry was sure they were speaking about him. "_What have you done to the child Gamahiro? You, human, where are you from?_" Whatever the toad had said when he pointed at the young wizard, the female seemed quite annoyed with. She seemed to be scolding him, earning a soft chuckle from Harry which he quickly hid. They reminded him of Ron and Hermione.

The chuckle caught their attention and Harry quickly raised his hands as an apology. "I'm sorry, I meant no disrespect," he said quickly with a soft smile. Three of the four toads were rapidly blinking at him and Harry wondered if he had done something wrong already.

Suddenly the elder chuckled, filling the hall with the sound. "_Well there is your answer Fukasaku_," the toad croaked. "_Let us give him the ability to converse with us, shall we_?" Whatever they were trying to do, Harry was suddenly knocked back and felt a sharp pain at the back of his head before it vanished again. It had been quick, and Harry hadn't even seen them move, but he felt slightly light headed as he sat up again. "Better?"

Harry blinked up at the three old toads. "I don't know what you did, but… hmm, this feels weird."

"It seems to have worked, otherwise we would not have been able to understand him," the female toad said. Harry rubbed his ears at the faint ringing before he realised that he could finally understand what those toads were saying to him. The young Gryffindor sighed in relief. "It would have been very awkward indeed," he muttered before he straightened his back. "I guessed you want to know my story?" Harry continued to tell the three elders what had happened before he ended up… well, here.

By the time Harry finished, he wondered if the oldest toad had fallen asleep. He seemed to have dozed off slightly. The male elder noticed and cleared his throat. "Hmm?" the seer hummed turning towards the male. "You had a question Fukasaku?"

The toad named Fukasaku sighed. "No Ōgama Sennin," the toad mumbled.

"I see," the Toad Sage said. "Eh, who was this again?"

"Harii-san, you senile old toad," Fukasaku almost growled. He was quickly scolded by the female, who seemed more then happy to tell him just who he was insulting. The oldest toad broke them up by reminding them they were married.

"Ah, Harii-san." Harry nodded, not really bothered by the different way they pronounced his name. "We will look into how you came to be here and how to possibly send you back." Relief coursed through Harry even when he felt the 'but' coming. "But know this, there is a good possibility you will not return to your realm. Since you died there we do not know what will happen when you are send back there."

Harry swallowed, unsure of what to make of it. Sure he hoped to get back to his own 'realm' even if it was just to cross over. The young wizard felt like he had been through enough, especially after the last two years. He just wanted to see his parents for the first time. "What will I do in the mean time? If there is no way for me to return… it's just that I haven't completed by education and I don't feel like waiting… I mean no disrespect…"

Ōgama Sennin wheezed out a laugh. "I like this human," he muttered with his eyes squinted shut. "You will train here," he stated turning to Gamahiro. "Ask Bunta to help this human."

"Yes Ōjiji-sama," Gamahiro said, taking Harry by surprise by picking him up again with his flipper. "Hold on tight Harii-san." The were off again, but not before Harry heard the old toad mutter, "Ah, what was I doing again?"

"Senile old toad," Harry was sure he heard one of the other toads say.


	2. Entering the Shinobi World

**A/N: Thank you all for the amazing reviews! I'm so happy and honoured. I feel slightly giddy. Anyway, there was a question about Harry's paring. He will be straight; this will not be a story in which everyone turns out to be gay. I just placed the parings warning at the beginning of the first chapter so people are prepared.  
Some reviews came with a few story ideas. I really liked some of them and will take them up into the story line. Don't be too surprised if this doesn't happen though because I still have my own idea about how the characters should react etc to certain situations. They are appreciated and don't hesitate to share some of your ideas with me in future.  
Thank you all for reviewing last time and I hope you will continue showing your support.**

**Chapter 1  
Entering the Shinobi World**

Sometimes it felt like years while at other moments it felt like it had only been a few days. Harry sighed as he stretched in the soft grass, looking up at the sky. "You have become stronger since yesterday little Kisai," Bunta said, resting himself next to the wizard while smoking his kiseru pipe. Harry cleared his throat, sending the frog boss an annoyed glance. "Don't push it Gaki. You might have grown a little since you arrived here a few years ago, but I was commenting on your technique nothing more."

"Fine, fine," Harry said with an amused grin. In all his time being here he had learned how to use all three basic Jutsus and a little extra. Since Harry was a wizard first he had practiced controlling his magic by himself. The wizard turned his head towards his sword. Learning Kenjutsu had been a pain at first, but the young Shinobi had wanted to learn how to use a sword. Thinking back to his second year at Hogwarts when he had used the sword of Gryffindor, Harry would have laughed at his inexperience. That and his Taijutsu was still weak so he had to rely on other weapons other than his magic and chakra abilities. Blaming the Dursleys for his malnourishment in his younger years wasn't getting him anywhere though.

Harry let out a long sigh and closed his eyes. "It makes me wonder if I will ever get home though. Three years I've been in this dimension and we're still as far from knowing as we were then. I've trained everyday and shared in your wisdom. Being a Shinobi suited me better then being a Quidditch player or Auror. If I had stayed behind, I would have probably ended up hating it in the end." The wizard turned Shinobi laughed softly. "And to think that a few years ago I wanted to just have a quiet life."

Bunta remained silent, blowing out a puff of smoke. "You still haven't given up on returning home?" The question hung in the quiet air. Harry was unsure of how to answer. Three years ago he would have said yes without even hesitating. He still felt guilty for leaving his friends to deal with Voldemort, but the Toads talked him out of that. They made him see the darker side of the Wizarding World. Even if he had loved it there, there were so many things wrong in that World that made his early life at the Dursleys seem… how should he call it? Peaceful and simple. The newly trained Shinobi was starting to like this dimension, even if he lived with a bunch of Toads. The boss Toad sends out another puff of smoke and laughed. "I think it's about time we send you down the mountain again. You've been practicing enough and even though you have done a few jobs for us, you are best to return to the humans."

Harry looked up towards his teacher and friend, Bunta had been with him the entire way. Sure he had also trained with Fukasaku in Senjutsu even if it apparently didn't work the same way as with the Shinobi who were originally born here. Bunta had taught him the rest, increasing in stamina and chakra control. The biggest part of the training had existed out of run and hide though. The wizard had been send down the mountain on a few missions to develop his strengths and experience in the real Shinobi world, meeting a few Shinobi from other villages, even if most of them had been observed by him from a distance. His mouth pulled into an amused smile. "You getting tired of me after all this time?" He quickly dodged the playful attack from the giant toad. Rolling to one side taking his sword with him while crouching low, Harry stayed near the grass with a large grin on his face. "Break time over?"

Before they could get started though, Gamakichi showed up. "Yo pops," the little toad shouted, jumping up to land on his father's head. "Hiya Ryuu." Harry nodded at the child of the boss. He had told them about his dealings with magical creatures and a few of the younger ones had immediately dubbed him as Ryuu, refusing to use any other name. The Wizard didn't really mind since he learned that it meant dragon. Sure the older toads often called him Kisai, which Harry had learned meant wizard. Harry had taking his distance from learning magic and favoured Chakra because it was more stable. He still used it when the situation called for it of course, or when he was bored, but mixing his form of magic with his Chakra made things a lot easier. Especially since he learned how to use nature Chakra when Fukasaku taught him Senjutsu. "Pops, the elders asked for you and Jiraiya returned from his trip. Says he's here for training again."

The large toad rolled his eyes and puffed out another cloud of smoke. "That little Jiraiya. What does he want now?" Harry frowned slightly and straightened out of his crouch. He had heard the toads speak of Jiraiya before, but had never actually met the man. Harry always seemed to be out on a mission for the Toads when the man decided to show his face. "Is that the guy who…?"

"Yeah," Bunta muttered, curling his giant mouth into a grin. Suddenly he made a swing at Harry, who jumped up high just in time before he was hit in the stomach by Gamakichi, who had launched himself off his father's head. Harry heaved in a deep breath, steadying himself while clutching the smaller toad close. "That's dirty," the wizard coughed, landing steadily on his feet.

"Oh you know how dad is Ryuu," Gamakichi said, slipping free to jump on top of his head. "Now let's all go together. You'll like Jiraiya. He's one of the great Sannin, known through most of the Shinobi world." Harry frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm not sure…" he realised too late when Gamakichi jumped off of his head. Bunta had already wrapped his tongue around him, taking the young Shinobi into his mouth and binding his arm so he could not break free. "What the…! Let me out. OY!"

It wasn't a pleasant sensation that was for sure. Bunta moved at great speed, making his body move and his tongue too. It made Harry feel like he was in a giant washing machine even if he was only rocking from side to side. He preferred to fly, but unfortunately they didn't have any flying broomsticks in this dimension and Harry wasn't skilled in making a normal one fly. Sure a simple hover charm should do the trick, but making something fly as fast as a Firebolt was impossible. Maybe he should learn to Summon an owl or something. Harry sighed and closed his eyes. _Hedwig, I hope you are happy and free._ He could never Summon a toad even if he was learning the Shinobi arts from them. The elders had promised him that he could call upon them when he was in need, but a toad contract would be lost on him.

After three years of only toads for company, Harry had learned to look ahead and not worry about his past. But on some days, especially when it rained which didn't happen often, the young wizard missed his friends and companions. Hedwig above anyone else. The snowy owl had kept him company for a long time after all. She had been his first friend and companion and had stayed with him even after she had been treated horribly by Vernon during the summer. He missed her and hoped that she was taken care of by at least Hagrid. The gentle giant had bought her for him after all and the two of them had been very fond of the Gamekeeper.

Something he had noticed right away was that his trademark scar had started to fade slightly. Sure he now had other scars decorating his body from where he had been injured, but that scar had linked him directly to Voldemort his entire life, never fading. And now, after three years in a different dimension, it had thinned and started to fade. Even if Harry would have decided to shave off all his hair you wouldn't be able to see it. His hair, his raven black mob of menace, had calmed and grown. His eye sight had cleared and for the first time in his life he didn't need his glasses anymore. Something he was quite thankful for. The colour of his eyes had cleared and become an even more impressive green.

Suddenly the movement stopped and Harry let out a sigh of relieve. "Now will you let me out," the Shinobi shouted at the toad boss making Bunta chuckle with amusement. The toad opened its mouth and unrolled his tongue. "Thank you Bunta-sama for the travelling arrangements." He heard Gamakichi chuckle together with someone else. That someone sounded more human though and Harry let the sound wash over him. The Shinobi straightened and turned to the source. Before him stood an older man with long white hair and strange red lines down his face. The man was wearing a Hitai-ate with the Mount Myouboku symbol on his forehead. It looked like he had made it himself. His whole outfit just screamed Hermit, something Harry couldn't help but smile about. Sure his own clothes weren't very stylish either. They were practical and lightweight for easy travel, coloured in black and green with the occasional red, yellow and blue. "You must be the Gama Sennin. I've heard a lot about you. Ryuu, nice to meet you."

The older man blinked before smiling. "So you've heard of me? Name's Jiraiya. It's nice to meet you too Ryuu-san." Jiraiya looked up at the toad boss. "I didn't know you kept another Shinobi here?"

Bunta patted Harry's head, making the young wizard roll his eyes in annoyance. "This little Kisai is a special case. You'll like him too. Come to think of it, we were about to send him out into the world. Stretch his little legs." Harry started to mutter under his breath about annoying toads and making him sound like a small child when he was nearly nineteen years old. A feeling of immediate danger hung over him and he raised his head to see the toad boss stare at him threateningly. The young Shinobi grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Bunta-sama?"

The toad boss huffed and relit his pipe. "You are getting cheekier by the minute. It's a good thing Gamakichi interrupted our training or…"

Harry wiggled his finger at Bunta with a cheeky grin. "No, no, Bunta-sama. Remember last time." Knowing he had pushed the giant toad over the edge, Harry leaped out of the way and started running when Bunta started to chase him. He laughed, dodging the first set of water bombs send his way.

…

Harry adjusted his backpack slightly so it would be more comfortable to wear. Jiraiya had stayed a month before he took off in the night, muttering something about an organisation called Akatsuki and not being able to stay any longer. So a month or so after that Harry, with the blessing of the elders, packed his spare clothes and some food for the journey he would be taking. "Well Gamakichi, let me know if you need my help," Harry said petting the little toad on its orange head. _Something's wrong_. The warning flashed through his body, but Harry was too late to retract his hand.

Sucked into the vortex, Harry saw the world darken before him, moving around him at great speed. It almost felt like travelling with a Portkey, but then without the unpleasant sensation of being hooked onto something behind the navel and pulled towards his destination. Suddenly he popped back into existence together with Gamakichi who blinked up at him. "I swear I didn't know that would happen Ryuu-kun," the little toad muttered.

When the smoke around them cleared, Harry still stood there staring at the little toad with its orange skin and blue coat. He sensed multiple people close by, but the glint in his eyes told Gamakichi more then enough. The little toad swallowed nervously before looking up to see a surprised Jiraiya and Naruto. "Yo, long time no see."

"Teme! Why is it always you Gamakichi that drags me into trouble?" Before the little toad could run for his life, Harry had picked him up and started to shake him. "And they said I had a knack for trouble, but you are the worst. Where have you taken me to this time?" Harry turned. "Oh hello Jiraiya-san. And who's this?" The blond was wearing an impressive ORANGE jumpsuit. He looked like a Shinobi though even with the noticeable colour. Harry silently wondered if anyone had ever told the kid that he couldn't possible hope to sneak up on people if he chose to wear orange all the time. The blond looked like a kind child, his blue eyes full of amazement and determination. No wonder Jiraiya was with the kid. Two women stood behind them, but Harry paid them no mind. It was obvious they would protect each other and they weren't seriously hurt. No, what drew his attention was the fact that Jiraiya looked like he had been influenced by something.

"Introductions can follow later Ryuu-kun," Jiraiya said while he brushed some of the sweat away. "We have a bit of a problem at the moment." He gestured with his head and Harry turned to look at the two men who stood atop of two giant snakes. One of them looked like Voldemort but less bald. Harry sighed softly and rolled his eyes. "Another one in for world domination with a thing for snakes. But what's with his arms? They seem like a dead weight to him." Someone snorted behind him, but Harry paid it no mind. He looked at the other figure. The guy gave Harry a creepy feeling. "I don't like doctors," he said while wrinkling his nose.

"Kabuto-kun is not a…" the blond kid started, but with one look from Harry he kept quiet. "Trust me, I know. Anyway, enough talk." The doctor and the Voldemort wannabe actually made an attack plan. They seemed to be a strong team, even though the Voldemort wannabe was clearly only using this Kabuto character. This could work to his advantage though. If he could eliminated the medic, the Voldemort wannabe would be easy to take out. Diving out of the way, taking the two women with him, Harry noticed too late that the kid had jump upwards as the snakes attacked. The blond was swallowed by the snake and Harry sighed. There was not a lot he could do for the kid at the moment and taking down the snake was not an option while the blond was inside of it.

"Protect each other," Harry said, more to the raven haired woman then the blond, while taking out his sword. He focused himself on Kabuto, who seemed to be doing the exact same thing. "I have never seen you before," the medic said, moving slightly to the left when Harry moved to the right. Kabuto pushed his glasses up and with a confident smirk he started his attack. "Let's see what you're made of."

His attacks were quick, with the precision of the medic he was. Harry used his sword to keep his distance from the mad doctor. It was hard to land any blows on him, his sword only scraping the surface every now and then. Something whizzed past him, missing Harry only by a hair when Kabuto made a move to get around him towards the two women. Kabuto jumped back, using his scalpels and kunai to block the needles. "You medics and your bloody needles!" Harry cried out, making use of the opening to continue his attack. It seemed that the medic was more then capable to do two things at the same time. Kabuto used the strangest technique, making his hands glow with Chakra.

At Harry's first possible opening the medic pushed his hands forward, trying to grab one of his arms but only succeeding in swiping his fingers down Harry's left arm. The effect of the technique was instantaneous, spreading first pain and then a numbing sensation where the fingers had been. Harry hissed in pain, his murderous green eyes focussing on the medic who smiled broadly at him. "Not as quick as you would like to be."

Harry let his fingers feel down the side of his injured arm. It was as if the muscles had been torn. "Damn this already," he growled and with the force of a raging animal, Harry replaced his sword before pushing his magic into his right hand. His hand started to glow red and with a smirk his green glowing eyes focused themselves on Kabuto. "You'll like this." And he fired the red orb towards the medic. Kabuto's eyes widened slightly, but he dodged the spell with ease. The second and third too, but the forth grazed his side. The medic hissed and clutched his side as his eyes narrowed behind his glasses.

"No time to think," Harry muttered, forgetting momentarily that his left arm was still numb until he noticed he couldn't raise it properly. Kabuto was faster in his recovery. He was already charging towards Harry with an almost manic glint in his eyes. How was that guy so fast at recovering? His stunning spells should at least have him not using his one side for a good half hour. Had it missed the medic completely after all?

Before he could figure it out, an orange flash moved past him and started attacking Kabuto with everything he had. The jabs of the blond were a little sloppy and it looked like the kid wanted to move faster then he could. Suddenly the blond kid called out an incomplete Jutsu, missing the medic who just side stepped him and falling to the side when he was his by Kabuto's chakra infused hands. Harry quickly ran round to catch the kid, but it meant leaving the two women open for an attack. Kabuto used this opportunity to attack, not even finding the blond woman a challenge as she screamed in fear when her companion's blood splattered against her.

"Damn it," Harry muttered before looking at the heavily panting child in his arms. "Kid, can you tell me anything about this guy?"

Blue eyes focused themselves on him and the kid shook his head. "We did the Chuunin Exams together. Kabuto-kun helped us through until he quid after the second test. He said he had reached his limit." It seemed that the blond realised this was obviously not true. He was shaking slightly as he leaned against Harry before trying to sit up. "Orochimaru -"

"The snake guy?"

The blond nodded. "- he seems to rely on Kabuto-kun. They say that the Sandaime used some kind of Sealing Jutsu when he fought against Orochimaru some time ago. I don't know what it is though."

Harry nodded. It wasn't a lot, but Harry had guessed most of it before hand. Oh well, it was worth a shot. "Stay here and keep an eye out for the two ladies," the wizard said, standing when Kabuto turned. "When you see an opening, use the guy as target practice. This is not over until they're dead."

The blond nodded, determination shining in those blue eyes. "I know." Harry nodded back and drew a set of Kunai after he threw his Shuriken towards the medic. He charged him head on, showing more flexibility then he had done before as Harry used his magic to make his body a little faster. Kabuto matched his speed, twisting impressively to match the wizard's insane moves.

Harry tried his hardest to keep the insane smile off of his face. This was supposed to be a serious battle after all and not an training session. The moment one of Kabuto's punches landed again, forcefully dislocating Harry's shoulder, the manic grin broke through. The wizard pushed himself upwards, making his body lighter by pushing his magic against his Chakra to spread the spell through his body more quickly. There was a five second delay as Kabuto followed Harry swing over his head before the wizard saw the man's dark eyes widen in surprise. "Bullseye."

What impressed Harry the most was not the accuracy of the throws, they were far from perfect after all, but that the blond was actually standing. Not only that, he was charging towards Kabuto and this time with a completed Jutsu which had an enormous amount of power. It made the medic sail through the air, twisting around because of the attack. Harry didn't get a chance to see how far the guy would land though, because at that moment Gamakichi hopped towards him. "Ryuu-kun," he shouted. "The snake! Get the snake!"

Harry watched in horror as one of Orochimaru's snakes moved towards them, raising itself to strike the two women. The wizard gritted his teeth, feeling slightly nostalgic as he grabbed his sword once more. Wait, maybe he could… "_Stop_!" he cried out towards the snake, but instead of a human cry a strange hiss echoed through the clearing. "_Take your battle elsewhere. We are not your enemies_."

The snake laughed, shaking its head from side to side and showing Jiraiya on the other side of the clearing fighting with Orochimaru. "_Then why do you attack? Then why do you wish to destroy my Master?_"

The wizard turned Shinobi sighed. There was no point in arguing with this snake, it was completely depended on its Master. "Forgive me," Harry muttered, pushing himself forward with his sword tightly clutched between his two hands. He charged the snake head on, but he moved so fast that the snake was barely able to keep up with him. Jumping up into the air, Harry raised his sword and blew against it, sending his chakra through the blade. It glowed red in his hand before flames erupted from it, cloaking the entire blade. His Fire Blade could be seen from afar, but with one swift move the snake's head was already rolling around in the grass. Harry was caught off guard by the final sweep of its tail. It struck him from the side, launching him towards the ground where he hit a rock. He felt something _crack_ as his head hit its hard surface, plunging him into darkness.


	3. Memories of a Dead Man

**A/N: There was a comment about Harry's pairing. Please read the last Author's Note for that because I'm not explaining it again. Furthermore, just because I wrote "Strong Harry" does not mean he is without fault. More explained in this chapter about what happened though.  
While I was watching **_**Fairy Tail**_** I got an awesome idea about how to describe Harry's Magic/Chakra mix.**

**Chapter 2  
Memories of a dead man**

When Harry reached consciousness something seemed off. He was lying on a bed and heard some soft snoring next to him. When he let his senses expand to beyond the overwhelming snore he could hear some soft whispering. A man Harry vaguely recognized as Jiraiya and a woman he had yet to officially meet. There was another woman in the room, but she had yet to speak. As the Wizard drew a breath he found the different scents which made up the night. Sweat from a long day's work or a battle past, smoke from the different foods eaten outside and lastly the bitter and sweet smells of alcohol and tea.

His ears twitched slightly when a cup was roughly being placed on a table top. A passing couple masked the voices from Jiraiya and the woman as they continued to argue. Harry twitched his fingers and wiggled his toes to start up the blood flow through his body. "Ah, it seems you are finally awake Ryuu-kun," Jiraiya said from across the room in a loud whispered.

The moment Harry opened his eyes a series of images flashed through his mind. It was as if someone was trying to communicate with him, telling him a strange tale. It took him a while to realize that the people he saw in his vision were from the world he had left behind. He witnessed the introduction of Draco Malfoy into the Death Eater ranks. How he was forced to take his father's place while Voldemort threatened to kill his loved ones if he should fail killing Dumbledore. He watched as Dumbledore fought against his cursed hand, treated by Snape who continued to do the man's bidding and planned for the old Headmasters death. Ron and Hermione, who had taken it upon themselves to avenge their fallen brother, had offered their services to the dying headmaster. He had promised them that they could help him, but under the promise to keep the killing to the adults. Only if Voldemort and his Death Eaters would declare an all out war would they be asked to defend their friends and families, but never on the front lines.

It was a strange concept for Harry these days. He had seen young Shinobi and Kunoichi on missions, fighting against fellow ninja who were twice as old. Besides Ron and Hermione had proven themselves worthy soldiers over the years after all, even if they were still naïve most of the time. He watched them grow, Ron who was still as hot-headed as ever seemed to cause even more trouble than when Harry had still been there and Hermione who was still trying to figure out how to use her knowledge in everyday situations. They made a great team and motivated the other students in fighting for what they believed to be right.

He felt oddly proud of his two best friends. They were a bit foolish though as they tried to do everything themselves, not relying on anyone but each other. Remus seemed to be having the same problem, pushing away everyone even if that person wanted nothing more than love him. At the end of what was supposed to have been Harry's sixth year of Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy had fully joined the Death Eater ranks with the help of Severus. It confused Harry when he watched the Potions Master kill his protector. It wasn't until the wizard turned Shinobi remembered all the conversations between the two men that he stopped being angry and started feeling sad.

The man had basically sold his soul away so he could keep protecting the one place he could truly call home, much like Harry had when he was young. Harry watched the fights and scorn Severus got by pretending to be the bad guy while in fact he was searching for the Horcruxes to destroy the man who had enslaved him. Watching his friends and former professors fight what was supposed to have been his fight against Voldemort and his Death Eaters made Harry feel guilty. Had he lived instead of ran blindly through the Veil after Sirius he would have been the one to face off against them.

Many of his friends and professors fell in battle, including the unsung hero Severus Snape who died at the hand of Voldemort when he learned of the man's betrayal. Now Harry was no longer a stranger to death, he had delivered the final blow to many since he entered the Elemental Nations, but watching his friends fall before him without being able to do anything was maddening. It must have taken a long time before the battle against Voldemort and his Death Eaters finally ended, because Harry saw the sun rise and set a few times. He was glad to see the survival of Ron and Hermione, and even Draco Malfoy had survived.

Something else happened when Harry watched Voldemort die. He was forced back in time to watch the events leading up to that faithful Halloween night. Sadness and loneliness filled him completely as he watched the last moments of his parents. At least now he knew they had always loved him.

Harry slowly awakened again as the vision ended, his eyes focusing on the room he was in. The blond with the big boobs was sitting in front of him, peering at him intently as if she was trying to look into his mind. "That won't work," Harry muttered startling the woman who slapped his face out of shock. There was a lot of force behind it as well which would have knocked Harry across the room in his younger years. The blond blinked in surprise, blushing when she realized she had hit him, before turning around to glare at Jiraiya who was laughing loudly. "Got your strength back then?"

Flexing his shoulders and stretching out his limbs, Harry grinned sheepishly. "Noticed it too, did you? I think it might have been the summoning. Oh and that," he pointed to the woman and his cheek. "That had nothing to do with my strength returning. More like years of practice with a stronger opponent."

An awkward silence seemed to fill the room as Harry's expression darkened. Fortunately it had no chance to get unbearable because Naruto decided to make himself known by moaning in his sleep. Harry chuckled as he focused himself on the young blond sprawled on the floor next to him. "You have a fine kid there Jiraiya. He'll grow strong, surpassing us all one day." He laughed, clutching his side at the stitch forming. "I sound like an old man. I only just reached my own full potential. I might still be able to learn a few Jutsus from you guys, but magic wise I'm full."

The blond woman frowned. "Magic?"

Harry nodded. "I was a wizard before I ended up in this world. When I ended up on Mount Myouboku I first didn't know what to do with myself. A fifteen year old with an incomplete magical training can be quite dangerous you see, but the Toads really helped me out. I never would have noticed the similarities between Chakra and Magic if it hadn't been for Gamakichi-kun who watched me as I experimented with wandless magic. Thing about dying is that you don't take anything with you when you get to the other side."

Jiraiya even looked surprised. "Wait, you died? You actually died?"

"Did I tell you?" Harry asked with a slight frown. The Toad Sennin shook his head with a slightly dazed expression. The wizard turned Shinobi grinned sheepishly. "I thought I did. Whoops. Anyway, I'll tell you now then. Mostly through my stupidity I got my friends in danger and my Godfather killed. I was trying to save him, but my inexperience in the magical world and all its wonders got the better off me. Had I known a little bit more about what lies in the Department of Mystery's…" he gritted his teeth. "Damn that man he was always way too secretive. Had he told me the truth I could have prepared for the day Voldemort would try to return."

Naruto huffed in his sleep and muttered something before curling himself deeper into his blankets. Harry snorted. "Well enough about _my_ past, what happened to the idiot who loves snakes so much."

The blond, he really needed to ask her name, seemed a little unsure about his continued change of mood. Jiraiya had gotten a little used to the wizard's antics when he was with the Toads. So the Toad Sennin proceeded to tell what had happened from his point of view. Apparently Tsunade (the blond with the big bosom) had drugged him the night before making him incapable of summoning a toad. Naruto had summoned Gamakichi, and Harry in the process, which wasn't as impressive as it sounds. Jiraiya had dealt with Orochimaru in his own special way, which meant trying to distract the man by talking to him so he could get most of his strength back. Once some of his strength had returned he proceeded by trying to kick the living daylights out of his former team mate. He had tried to do something about the snakes, but it ended up being less effective. When Orochimaru realized Kabuto was killed by Harry and Naruto, and his last remaining snake too, the man fled.

Tsunade and Shizune (the blonde's assistant who likes needles) healed all three of them and they were just waiting for Naruto to wake so they could continue on their way towards the village of Konoha. "Why wait for the Gaki to wake up?" Harry asked, pouting slightly. Jiraiya had told him about this Konoha village. He wanted to see it! "Naruto is a lightweight because of his malnutrition. I can easily get him haul him along for a bit, at least until he's awake again."

"You seem to be in a hurry," Tsunade said, her eyebrows slightly raised in surprise and suspicion.

Harry giggled, something he promised himself would never happen again but couldn't help since he was so excited about getting away from the Toads again. It sounded cruel since they had all done so much for him, but Harry needed to be with people. Maybe he could meet new friends and even see a few acquaintances again. There was a whole would out there to be discovered! "I'm a free man at last, free to do all the things I've always wanted to do but never got the chance too."

"Hmm," said Jiraiya. "Ryuu-kun has a point, we could carry Naruto back to Konoha. We have to get you back there as soon as possible Tsunade. Who knows what those two bats at the Council will do now that there is no Hokage."

_This is so not how I wanted to travel there, but if they're in a hurry_… Harry sighed. "I guess I can offer my services for this. Now who will have the most accurate description in their mind about the place we are travelling to?"

Jiraiya puffed out his chest. "Well, I -"

"The kid," Tsunade interrupted him, pointing at the sleeping blond. Harry nodded. "I thought so," and he started to poke Naruto in the ribs with his foot. "Oy, kid. Wake up or we're going to leave without you. You'd best get all your stuff ready and get your assistant here too or I'm leaving her behind."

Naruto groaned and waved Harry's foot away with his hand, but the wizard was having none of it. If they were in a hurry, they were in a hurry. He was unsure enough if his form of Legilimency was going to work and he wouldn't push himself into the blonde's mind without him realizing it. "I'm having none of that," Harry said, grabbing Naruto's wrist and yanking the young Shinobi in an upright position. "I need you fully awake for this or I'm going to be lost in your memories."

Blue eyes focused themselves on the wizard, a clear confusion and panic shining through. "M-memories? Of what?"

"Nothing too shocking," Harry said with a confident smile. "I just need to know what Konoha looks like so I can Apparate us there. By the way, are there any protections on your village apart from the ninja's?"

"What more protection would we need?" Naruto said confidently, though he was still slightly shook up about what was about to come. "You are not protected against anything but ninja attacks," Harry said. "Sure this is a world where mostly ninja's seem to rule, but when it comes to dealing with more… spiritual and magical things."

"S-spirit?" the blond muttered, paling quite dramatically.

Harry chuckled. "They're not as bad as they sound. Most of them have either lost their way or haven't given up on living. While others might not remember their deaths, some like to boast way too much. I remember Nick used to complain all the time about being beheaded by a blunt axe. If I remember correctly it took 45 blows of the axe before it killed him and his head still wasn't completely severed. I do wonder how the others died…" He sighed with a distant look in his eyes.

Naruto looked slightly disturbed by the thought. "Wouldn't it be rude, and pointless, to ask? I can't imagine a ghost wanting to tell you about how they died."

The wizard made a none-committal noise in the back of his throat. "It all depends on who you ask I guess. Myrtle was more than happy to tell me how she died." He suppressed a shudder at the memory of the teenage ghost. "She was one strange woman," Harry added resisting the urge to look over his shoulder as if he expected her to show up at any moment. "But we're getting of topic. I need to see your memories of the place we're transporting to. Since there are apparently no other protections but the ninja ones I can get us inside without any problems. Now sit tight kid and focus on that village of yours."

The young Shinobi swallowed nervously but Harry paid it no mind, scotching closer and reaching out his hands to place on either side of the blonde's head. "Relax and let me in. The more you are going to resist, the worse it will be for the both of us. The best way for this to work will be as if you were walking down the street, just wandering around aimlessly. Once you feel my presence walk to a place that is easily reachable, somewhere not a lot of people would be during this time of day. You don't have to force yourself to think about it now, just let it come to you as you are walking. Do you understand Naruto?"

While Naruto still seemed unsure, staring warily at Harry's hands as they slowly made contact with his skin. "How do I do this then?" he asked, still unsure but determent nonetheless.

"Just close your eyes and start walking," the wizard said reassuringly and he closed his own eyes as well. Now the theory of Legilimency was quite simple. Force your magic to open up a link between your mind and the intended victim and push it open by saying the enquired word. Normally there would need to be eye contact, but Harry would try a more humane approach. He would let Naruto choose the setting where they would meet, nudging gently against the boy's sub-consciousness to let him in. It sounded so easy, but in reality it would be much more difficult. If Harry didn't have the proper control over his own mind, things could really get bad. His own memories could force themselves on Naruto's mind, or the other way around, which could lead to memory loss. If Naruto resisted or tried to push him away, Harry's mind could be lost would he not be strong enough to fight him. Or the other way around again, should Harry be too forcefully he could pull Naruto in his mind, locking the blond Shinobi away.

Letting out a long breath, Harry focused himself on the magic which flowed through his body, letting it pool into the palms of his hands before letting it connect to Naruto's face. "_Legilimency_," he whispered, using it as a password to connect his magic with the blonde's mind. There was no resistance from the young Shinobi, but Harry could feel the shivers under his fingers as he pressed on into his mind.

It took some time to get over the motion sickness caused by the transference into another's mind. When the world finally stopped swaying around him, Harry tried to focus himself on the blond haired child walking through the streets of his beloved village with a longing the wizard couldn't seemed to understand anymore since he arrived here. There was no time to feel sorry for himself though. Harry could already feel the pressure of being in the boy's mind increasing. If they didn't find a good place to transport too, he would have to try again, all the while increasing the risk of losing his mind.

As Harry followed Naruto down the strange village, something hot was slowly burning his back. If Harry wasn't used to 'playing' with fire all the time it would have burned him alive, but now the burning was reduced to a pleasant tingling sensation. Harry shook it off as a defence Naruto used without knowing like he himself had launched a magical attack on Snape in his fifth and final year of Hogwarts. The burning sensation intensified, it almost felt like someone was literally burning holes into his back.

A cold, chilly wind swept through the streets. It must be a place where Naruto had a bad experience before. It looked like an ordinary street, with ordinary shops, where ordinary people would live their lives. But then again, Privet Drive looked like an ordinary street where ordinary people lived and look what it had held… Harry sighed and shook his head. The word 'ordinary' held no meaning for anything produced by humans, they just choose to ignore the world as it was and make it 'ordinary'. "I'm getting annoying at my old age," Harry muttered, huffing slightly as he realized he just called himself old. Again! "Dumbledore was old. Hell, even Merlin was way older then I am today. There's no reason to call myself old yet. Now where is that kid leading me? I feel like we've been walking for hours already."

In the mean time the heat was getting worse. The road started to shimmer and the bricks of the buildings would have turned into mush was this not Naruto's recollection of the village he loved. The blond kept on walking, oblivious to the heat around him and the effect it had on the wizard who was huffing behind him. "Where ever we are going, speed up a bit Naruto," he said, startling the young Shinobi who turned to look at Harry. "Your defences are getting a little overwhelming. I don't know how long I'll be able to keep cool."

Naruto frowned before looking apologetic. "Sorry, it must be Kyuubi," the blond muttered. "I'm not doing anything see. Now about that spot which you want to use to transport us too. _That_ might be our best bet." Naruto pointed upwards towards four giant heads carved into the mountainside. "It's the highest point in the village and nobody ever comes there, especially since they knew I would be there most of the day."

Harry nodded, not paying the last comment any mind. "Imagine us up there. I need to be able to see it so I can visualize the landing spot better."

Nodding, Naruto tentatively took Harry's hand. They didn't really need to have any physical contact for Naruto to imagine them on top of the mountain, but the wizard didn't comment on the action. He just smiled, nodding back as if agreeing with the gesture and showing he trusted the blond in leading him where he wanted. The smile from the young Shinobi was almost blinding and they were standing on top of one of the heads before Harry could even blink away the spots.

The wizard padded the young Shinobi's shoulder before quickly scanning his surroundings. There wasn't much to see. It seemed to be a clearing of sorts, large enough to hold a ground of about twenty people. Should they transport here in a circle they would have room enough to fall backwards onto the grass. The trees could be a problem if his aim was off, but Harry had to take that gamble. This place would be just perfect. "You did great kid," Harry said, turning back to the beaming blond. "See you on the other side." And he closed his eyes to pull himself out of Naruto's mind.

His body was on fire! It was hot and he was sweating buckets. When Harry opened his eyes everything was spinning around him. The wizard quickly closed them again. "Water," he croaked. "I need water. And loads of it." He would have tried to conjure up some water himself, but the way he was feeling now it was sure to fail. It would probably cause an explosion instead of the desired cooling liquid. There were some hasty footsteps before Harry felt someone hover over him. Opening glazed green eyes, he focused himself on the outstretched arm with a single glass of water on the end of it. He grabbed it, stared at if for a few seconds before dumping the contents on his head. As the water made its way down his scalp he looked up into dark brown eyes. Shizune was looking at him with her mouth slightly open in question and shock. "I meant loads," Harry muttered, swaying a little as he could feel the water evaporate once it reached his neck.

Suddenly a second set of footsteps closed in on him and before he could see who it was a bucket of cold water was emptied on him. "I think that's what he meant," Jiraiya said and Harry could almost hear the smirk. He shuddered as the cold water touched his skin, caressing it softly and cooling him down instantly. His skin went from bright red to his usual slightly tanned colour and the wizard sighed in relief. "Much better," Harry muttered and with a bit of wandless magic he took the bucket from the Toad Sennin and filled it again with water.

"Why didn't you do that before?" Jiraiya pouted, clearly disappointed he wouldn't be allowed to empty out more water on Harry.

"If I would have tried, I would have blown up the room," Harry said with a slight shrug of his shoulders before he emptied the bucket again. The second shower cleared up his mind completely and he proceeded to dry his clothes and the area around him. He ignored the stunned looks from Tsunade, Shizune and Naruto, though the latter one looked excited with the magic show.

Harry focused himself on the young Shinobi when he was finished. "Are you experiencing any pains in your head or anywhere else?"

A look of surprise flashed over Naruto's face before it was replaced by a stubborn look Harry only knew too well. "I'm fine," was his reply and Harry sighed mentally. "It won't do well to lie to me kid," the wizard said sternly. "I did not ask this because I felt like being a concerned citizen. I asked because it might be that your tenant is trying to take advantage of the situation." Four stunned looks focused themselves on Harry and the wizard could already see the fear making its way into those bright blue eyes. "Look kid," he said with a sigh and lifted his hair to show the nearly faded lightning bolt on his forehead. "See this scar? This scar is a reminder of my past as a host to the person who killed millions, including my parents. He gave me this scar when I was a year old, quite on accident as he placed a piece of his soul in there as well. I have been carrying the murderer of my parents with me almost my entire life. The man, Voldemort, he tried to kill me after failing to murder me when I was an infant. I know what it's like to have someone tag along with you, though I do not know the relationship you two have. Voldemort and I… Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I went through a certain process when I was fifteen. Because Voldemort was trying to invade into my mind I had to learn Occlumency, the art of closing your mind to outside offenders. The process was very painful for me. Every time my teacher entered my mind by force, my defences were down and Voldemort had access to my mind. I dreamed his dreams, I felt his anger and hatred, and I even felt his happiness at one point. This is why I asked you if you are experiencing any pains."

Naruto looked scared and he nodded slowly. "Yes," he whispered. "M-my ears are ringing slightly and I can't see to focus. My arms are hurting too."

Harry sighed in relief. It didn't sound like whoever it was, was trying to take over. "It might just be a side effect of me entering your mind," he explained calmly and Naruto relaxed his tense shoulders. "What I want you to do though is try to stay awake until you feel the pain go away. When we get to Konoha I will try to relief some of your pain if I still have enough magic left. _Why was I so bad at potions_," he added in a whimper, raising his eyes towards the ceiling in a silent prayer. "Anyway, all good to travel?"

The young Shinobi seemed to perk up at the idea of returning to Konoha again. "That's right, Tsunade baa-chan has to help Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke before taking the post as a Hokage."

"You mean after right?" Tsunade muttered with a raised eyebrow. She seemed less than impressed with Harry at the moment, but he didn't really care about that. Naruto seemed to want to protest but was cut off by Jiraiya. "Gaki, get changed so we can leave."

While Naruto rushed to get ready, Tsunade focused her sharp brown eyes on Harry. "There are some things you seemed to be aware of which are classed as high ranked secrets." The wizard raised an eyebrow but refrained from commenting. "If you were to stay at Konoha you need to be aware that telling anyone about these secrets without authorized permission they are punished and put to death. Should you choose not to remain in Konoha and tell anyone, whether friend or foe, about any information about Konoha, you will be hunted down and killed. You understand now that your actions should you tell anyone about Naruto's tenant will give you a one way ticket to the executioner."

"Of course Tsunade-sama," Harry said seriously with a slight bow. "And may I make the first appointment with you once you are instated as Hokage of Konoha."

She frowned, clearly curious about what it was the wizard wanted to talk to her about. "After I visit the hospital and see to all the paperwork the Third left me, I will be happy to talk with you."

"Good answer Tsunade –sama," the wizard said with a mysterious grin just as Naruto entered the room again. "Everyone packed and ready to go? Good, now please stand in a circle and hold hands. Once I start transporting us, please DO NOT let go of the hand you are holding on to. You might feel a strong pull as we will be travelling at high speed, but once you let go I can't guarantee your safety."

Naruto quickly grabbed Harry's hand, clearly quite taken with the mysterious wizard who used to be a host. Shizune took Harry's other hand, then came Tsunade and Jiraiya look very taken with himself when he took Tsunade's hand. "Stop those perverted thoughts Jiraiya," Harry said with a stern look on his face. "It will compromise the transportation."

While Naruto and Shizune chuckled at the remark, Tsunade smirked and Jiraiya pouted. "I don't belief you Ryuu-kun," he muttered like the big child he was.

"Try me," Harry said dangerously and with a glint in his eyes which clearly meant trouble should the pervert try anything. "Come on Ero-Sennin, we don't have time for this," Naruto whined, sticking out his tongue when Jiraiya scowled at the nickname. "Okay, please close your eyes and focus on the person you are holding hands with. Try not to get impatient and do not let go when you feel the pull, only when I say you can. It is advisable to close your eyes since we will be travelling at a great speed."

Harry inhaled deeply and focused himself on the area Naruto had shown him. He had only seen Hermione and Ron learn Apparition so he understood the theory behind it. When he looked back onto his youth he could have sworn he had used it a few times without knowing it so the sensation must be about the same. The also had the theory behind creating a Portkey which used an object to transport a large company of people from one place to another. Knowing the theory for this wouldn't work in creating one though so he had tried combining the two forms of instant transportation to create his own version. He had used if on himself before, using a few eyebrows and fingernails in the process which thankfully all grew back, and when he perfect it he tried transporting with Gamakichi a few times.

To say he was nervous would be an understatement. When he finally felt his magic connect to all four extra people he pulled hard with his magic as if he wanted to try and lift them from the ground. "_Apparate_," he commanded. There was no '_crack_' or any loud noise nor was there any unpleasant sensation that Harry felt when he used the Portkey. It was as if they floated in mid-air before rushing towards their destination at high speed it almost felt like Harry was racing on top speed with his _Firebolt_ again. Oh how he missed the sensation of flying with his broomstick at high speed. He really had to perfect it one day so he could fly normally again.

It took longer than Harry had expected before they touched the ground again. A Portkey would only take a minute at most and he guessed Apparition would only lest a few seconds. His technique usually only lasted a few seconds when he practiced with it. But all in all Harry felt quite proud that he was able to transport five people in one go over a long distance in under five minutes. As he opened his eyes, he quickly checked if everything was attached and gave a relieved sigh. "All right, we're here. Or at least I hope we're here," he quickly added.

Seeing Naruto's reaction, which was much more exuberant than the older ninja's, made him crack a smile.

**A/N: show of hands for who thought I was going to introduce Harry to the Kyuubi :P  
I was recently watching Star Trek (again) so when I wrote this: **we will be travelling at a great speed **I first wrote **_**warp speed**_** just for fun, but I changed it because I didn't want to give you all the impression I was going to use Star Trek fraises throughout the story. Would have been funny though. **_**Live long and prosper**_** LOL**


	4. A bunch of misfits

**A/N: Thank you all so much for reviewing. Now I noticed that a few people had some questions about the story, so here is a quick Q&A before the chapter. I hope this clears a few things up.**

_**Kirallie asked: So Harry was a Horcrux but isn't one now?  
**__Yup. In the Wizarding World Harry would still have a Horcrux latched to his scar, but because he passed through the Veil and 'died' the Horcrux disappeared._

_**A Guest commented on the fact that Apparition isn't a command and that Harry should be fully capable of doing silent magic.  
**__You forget that Harry was only at the end of his fifth year when he passed through the Veil. He was not a fully trained wizard and never learned about Apparition. He had to learn it by himself. The technique he used was a mix between Apparition and a Transportation Jutsu that he developed. I'm not too sure about the 'silent magic' comment since I did say that it made no noise unless you meant about the command Harry gave him magic. Again, Harry was only fifteen when he passed through the Veil and they learn non-verbal magic at sixth year. Besides, it was a command so it works slightly different. Harry can use non-verbal spells, like when he used wandless magic to refill the bucket with water and clean the room, but the Legilimency and the Transportation spell were both different forms of magic which needed a command. (I hope I explained it well)_

_**The same Guest also commented on my 'Naruto will surpass us all one day' you gave the Killing Curse and Apparition as an example that Harry would be stronger.  
**__Point one; Harry will never willingly use the Killing Curse. It has been drilled into him that it is one of the Unforgivable Curses, something Voldemort used to kill off his parents (and many others). Now I must admit that Apparition is very useful in a tight spot, but the ninja's have their own Transportation Jutsus (if you need a reminder of what the Yellow Flash was famous for than I wonder if you ever read or saw Naruto). Sure Harry's magic has developed into something normal wizards could never use unless they did the same training, but that does not mean he is unbeatable in the Elemental Nations. Naruto is a Jinchuuriki and will keep developing his skills as a Shinobi. Once he reaches the final stage of his Kyuubi transformation (with the cool outfit) he will have surpassed Harry and most of the other Jinchuuriki. But that's still a long way away._

_**And the last question from another Guest: why would Harry be executed if reveals Naruto's status when he's isn't a ninja of Konoha or a citizen? Who's Tsunade to give such an ultimatum?  
**__Bit of a silly question really, who is Tsunade to give such an ultimatum? Why she is the Hokage of Konoha of course! I get it, not until this chapter, but as she has already accepted the duty in her mind she is fully entitled to give such an ultimatum when an S-Class secret is revealed to an outsider. Whether Harry chooses to stay at Konoha or not, he is still informed about the secret as is rightfully warned about the consequences of revealing the secret to anyone who does not know. Only Naruto and the Hokage are allowed to reveal the secret and anyone else who knows will be punished accordingly when they reveal it to anyone else. Everyone but the children knew about Naruto being a Jinchuuriki and only when Naruto decided to reveal his secret were his team mates etc made aware of this fact._

**I hope that answers your questions. If you have any more don't be shy and ask. I will do my best to answer them. And now on to the next chapter. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 3  
A bunch of misfits**

Harry opened his eyes to a new morning. Soft, warm sunlight entered through the large windows, the white curtains moving as a breeze entered through the open window. Blinking, the wizard stretched in the warm and comfortable bed, moaning appreciatively as his joints popped. "Ryuu nii-san, you're awake!" The excited shout came from the entrance of the hospital room before the hyper blond bounced into the room. A pink haired girl stood behind him, peering curiously into the room.

"So are you I see," Harry said with a chuckle, raising himself from the soft pillows. "Good morning Naruto-kun. How are you today?"

Naruto blinked at the slightly formal greeting, but did not lose his bright smile. "Tsunade baa-chan is healing Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke-teme but she kicked me and Sakura out of the room. Apparently I was distracting her," he commented with a deadpanned expression as if something like that couldn't possibly be true. Harry smirked slightly and saw the pink haired girl muffle her laughter. She was still waiting at the entrance of the doorway. When Naruto noticed him looking, he quickly gestured for her to enter. "This is Sakura-chan Ryuu nii-san. She's my team mate. Sakura-chan this is Ryuu nii-san. He helped us fight against Orochimaru and Kabuto and got us to Konoha really quick dattebayo!"

Sakura entered the room and bowed politely. "It's nice to meet you Ryuu-san. Thank you for getting our Hokage back so quickly."

The wizard smiled and bowed back from his position on the bed. "It is good to meet you too Sakura-san and it was my pleasure." Naruto looked at the two of them as if this formal greeting was alien to him and Harry silently wondered just how much the blond had learned about courtesy. The way he had introduced him to Sakura clearly showed inexperience with these things. Maybe he could learn the blond a thing or two while he stayed in Konoha. Then again, he had only known the kid no more than two days so maybe it was not his place. He cracked his neck. "Well, you two do you have any plans for today or are you willing to show me your lovely village?"

The two team mates shared a look. "Another friend of ours is also still in this hospital," Sakura admitted. "We were going to go see him while waiting for the Godaime to finish treating Sasuke-kun."

Harry smiled. Nobody could deny that these Shinobi weren't loyal to their friends. "Tell you what, while I get dressed and have something to eat, you can visit your friend who is also in the hospital. I will come and find you when I'm done. I don't know what kind of treatment your team mate will receive from Tsunade-sama, but I know that when I was treated by the nurse I would sleep away most of the day after any type of treatment. Maybe it would be good for Sasuke-san to have some sleep before you pester him with questions and heroic stories."

At first it seemed that either one wanted to protest, but when they realized that Harry didn't want to keep them away from Sasuke out of selfish means but because Sasuke could be tired from the treatment they nodded. "Sounds like a plan," Sakura said.

"Alright, see you later Ryuu nii-san! Come on Sakura-chan, maybe we can get Bushy Eyebrows a 'get well' gift." Naruto waved good-bye to Harry and rushed out the door. Sakura bowed hastily before rushing after her team mate, muttering all the way about annoying blonds. Harry chuckled slightly as he watched the now empty doorway. That blond bundle of bright sunshine really lit up the room and now that he was gone Harry could feel the emptiness sinking into every corner. The wizard sighed softly and swung his stiff legs over the edge of the bed. He had used too much magical energy when he transported their little group to Konoha, but he had done it. For a first time use Harry was really surprised it had worked at all.

He slowly made his way towards the bathroom, yawning and stretching all the way. Someone had cleaned and mended his clothes while he was asleep. They were lying in the bathroom in a neat pile, his backpack placed next to the door. Harry quickly showered and dressed himself in a loose pair of black trousers and a casual dark green shirt which hugged his chest comfortably. He wondered if he should wear a Shinobi pouch with weapons but decided against it. It would draw more unwanted attention then he wanted. A foreign civilian drew less attention than a foreign Shinobi.

Unsure if he would be returning to the Hospital room, Harry shrunk his backpack and placed it in his pocket. Casting one last glance around the room to see if he had forgotten anything he made his way down towards the lobby. Surely they would have some kind of eating facility here were everyone could eat. They did. There was a small restaurant where visitors and patients could buy drinks and snacks while they waited. The food was still slightly foreign to Harry was he studied the Japanese script with ease, but it was a hell of an improvement from the bugs he had been eating while he stayed with the Toads. So he enjoyed each bite of his small bento and green tea, studying the people around him with the casual attitude of a person who was waiting for someone or something.

When he was little Harry had only been at the Hospital once for a check-up. It was a standard requirement otherwise Harry was sure the Dursley's wouldn't have done it. That and it was free, as were his glasses. Glasses he, fortunately, didn't have to wear anymore. The wizard chuckled slightly as he watched a small child being dragged along by his mother, screaming that he didn't want to. He remembered Dudley being the same, hitting and screaming at his mother that he didn't want to get his shots. Harry was sure his cousin had been overweight even then and he wondered if aunt Petunia had received the advice to exercise her son more. This child looked healthy though. Sure he had some cuts and bruises but Harry figured ninja children played more rough then normal children. Then again Dudley and his friends had never been too kind to him either. He really had them to thank for making him as fast as he was today.

An elderly woman sitting at the table next to him shook her head. "Kids these days have become soft. In my day you were thankful for any medical treatment you got."

Harry smiled kindly at her. "Yes, children these days get spoiled because their parents are trying to compensate for the horrors in their own past. They create little monsters that do not know how to think for themselves and can only see in black and white."

The elderly woman took her tea and sat down on the chair opposite of him, smiling as Harry stood to bow respectfully to her. "Ah please sit my young friend; this old woman is still as fit as a fiddle." Harry chuckled softly. "Now let us hear about those little monsters. You do not seem so old that you should be troubled by the weight of the world."

"I have always fended for myself," Harry said. "I often wonder if the youth of today realizes just how lucky they really are."

"Of course not," she said, resting her hands on top of her walking stick which reminded Harry of old witches from fairy stories. She sat there, in the comfortable wooden chair, her warm brown eyes eying the crowed around her fondly. "They rush off to play ninja and boast about the fights they've been in and even the civilian children are a rowdy bush, but they have not witnessed war and suffering. Our Shinobi and Kunoichi will learn, the more dangerous the mission, the more comrades they loose, the colder they will become. And we need them cold for war."

Harry looked thoughtful. "I'm not so sure about that. Caring about your friends and family, even caring for the villagers you don't know, can make you strong enough to fight any war." The elderly woman looked at the wizard with sharp, calculating eyes, but she refrained from commenting any further. A short silence fell between them, not unpleasant or awkward, before she spoke again. "Maybe. We will know soon enough."

Why she said that was a bit of a mystery to Harry, but he shrugged it off as something which was not his business. So they spoke of casual thing like the weather and what is was like to live in Konoha, but nothing personal or close to their hearts.

When Harry finished his bento her husband showed up. She waved goodbye, chuckling softly as her husband continued to mutter about his treatment. Stretching as he stood, Harry decided it was time to look for the sunny blond and his pink haired companion. He walked up to the reception desk and smiled kindly at the lady behind it. "I was looking for Tsunade-sama or Shizune-san. I belief she was looking after a patient here today."

The woman blinked before smiling, a lightly blush spreading on her cheeks. "I belief she is on this floor. If you keep to the left you will find her for sure."

"Thank you," and with a wink Harry left the blushing receptionist so he could search for Naruto and Sakura. He didn't have to search very long as they were just around the second corner, standing in the hallway probably discussing what to do next. Naruto looked up, a broad grin spreading on his face when he noticed Harry. "Ryuu nii-san! We were just talking about coming to find you."

Harry ruffled through the blond mane, earning an even wider grin and slight blush. "Well here I am. How is your friend? I'm guessing this is his room?"

Sakura nodded, a hopeful but worried light shining in her eyes. "Tsunade-sama is in there at the moment talking about Lee's treatment together with Gai-sensei."

"I'm sure Tsunade baa-chan can heal him right away," Naruto said confidently. Harry nodded. "Are you too ready to show me your beautiful village?" The blond Shinobi excitedly grabbed his hand and started pulling him towards the lobby again. "We'll show you every best bit."

…

Konoha was larger than Harry could have imagined. He recognised some things from when he had wandered through the blonde's mind, but now he realised just why Naruto had taken so long to figure out a good place to teleport them too. There was a special area designed for the Shinobi training grounds, far away from the civilian public. With every training ground they passed a story came attached with it. Especially training ground 44, the Forest of Death, which Harry found resembled the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts, seemed to bring way to many different emotions. It seemed a sensitive subject, but exciting enough to tell a little about. The clan compounds were close to either the edge of the village or the Hokage tower. Sakura enjoyed teaching Harry about the different abilities of each clan (at least the ones she knew off, since there were a lot more secrets among clans then Harry first realised). The area where Sakura lived with her parents was one of the nicer areas of the village, close to the shopping districts and markets. The area reminded Harry slightly of Privet Drive with its clean and prestige's walls. If there had been gardens and laws they would have been neatly kept which would bore the Weasley twins to no end. Naruto refused to tell him where he lived, quickly changing the subject with an embarrassed blush creeping towards his cheeks.

"Kakashi-sensei lives around here," the blond said, pulling at Harry's arm as he dragged him towards one of the more cheap looking flats. "Tsunade baa-chan already visited him so he should be alright now. You have to meet him too Ryuu nii-san and I want you to meet Iruka-sensei too. We can have lunch with him at Ichiraku's."

Sakura stopped, looking back over her shoulder towards the general direction of the hospital. "I'll visit Kakashi-sensei later. It's getting late and I want to visit Sasuke before I have to do my chores for today. It was good meeting you again Ryuu-san. See you later Naruto."

The blond seemed slightly chest fallen but quickly smiled his brightest smile. "See you tomorrow for practice Sakura-chan! Tell Sasuke that I'll visit him later."

The pink haired girl had already disappeared into the crowd. "She seems very fond of Sasuke," Harry mused gesturing towards the building so Naruto could take the lead. The blond frowned, his bright blue eyes looking thoughtful. He didn't say anything though and his silence became slightly depressing. Harry ruffled the young Shinobi's hair. "You're all still young Naruto. Look at me, I'm nineteen and I've only been on one date in my entire life. It was an absolute disaster and the relationship stranded, but we remained friends even if it was slightly awkward to talk to her afterwards. Anyway, what I wanted to say was that it love will happen at some point in your life. Don't worry too much about it. There are more women in the world then the pink haired girl you think you love."

Harry winked at the sputtering Naruto, enjoying seeing the kid behave like a normal child. "Now let's meet this teacher of yours. His name sounds awfully familiar." Naruto blinked before rushing up the stairs of the apartment building. "Kaka-sensei is really awesome Dattebayo! He's known as the Copy-nin and he taught us a lot of cool things. He's also taken really good care of Mr Ukki, which shows just how awesome he is. Mr Ukki is the plan I gave him by the way," he added as he glanced back to see Harry's confused expression. "Sasuke-teme refused my plant when I gave him one when we became a team and Sakura-chan let it die." The disappointment in his voice nearly sent a chill down Harry's spine and he shook his head. He really needed to block his feelings towards the blond or he would be stuck in Konoha just to be with Naruto.

"But at least Mr Ukki is still alive," Harry said in a soft, encouraging voice. "It shows character. I will enjoy meeting your sensei." Something else stirred inside his body. Some more unwanted feeling for the mysterious sensei, which might not be so mysterious at all.

"Here we are," Naruto said with renewed enthusiasm and he knocked on the door before entering cheerfully. "Kaka-sensei! You awake? I got someone for you to meet!"

A long suffering moan sounded from what seemed to be the bedroom and Harry wondered if he should stop Naruto in opening the door, before he heard the tired greeting followed by at least two more who were chuckling. "Come on Ryuu nii-san, these are Kaka-sensei, Gekimayu-sensei who is Bushy Eyebrows sensei, Asuma-sensei and Kurenai-sensei."

As Harry stepped into the room he was met by three strange and yet familiar faces and one person who was lying deep under the covers, meaning only a bit of silver/grey hair stuck out from under it. "I apologise for the intrusion but Naruto-kun wished for me to meet him sensei while he made sure of the man's health. My name is Ryuu. It's an honour to meet you all." And Harry bowed with the right amount of respect to the Shinobi and Kunoichi of Konoha.

The Kunoichi with the most startling red eyes and ebony hair smiled kindly at him, a wave of calm emitting from where she stood. The two men were staring at him wearily but calmly. One is sitting in the windowsill with a cigarette, the other leaning casually against the wall with the most amazing eyebrows and bowl-cut. The one lying on the bed, who Harry presumed to be Naruto's sensei, was staring at him intensely with one eye. "It's good to meet you Ryuu-san," the Kunoichi said kindly. "I'm Yühi Kurenai."

"Sarutobi Asuma," greeted the man by the windowsill, blowing the smoke out of the open window. The one with the large eyebrows and the bowl-cut flashed Harry a grin worthy of Lockhart but with a lot less self-indulgence and a bit more macho flair. "Meito Gai. Good to meet you Ryuu-kun!"

"Hmm," the bit of silvery grey hair hummed from beneath the covers and Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes, it is good to see you again Ryuu-chan." The ninja's in the room startled slightly at looked at Harry for a reaction, but the wizard just stared at the famous Copy-nin unimpressed. "The Toads let you down the Mountain again then?"

Naruto was gaping at him in surprise and slight betrayal and Harry flashed him an apologetic smile before turning his attention back to Kakashi. "Har, har scarecrow. It seems that you are lazing around as usual. Maybe I really should have asked Pakkun to-"

"Yes," Kakashi quickly interrupted, the bits of his face which were visible seemed to colour an almost irresistible pink. Harry chuckled at the obvious discomfort the man was showing. "Well, good to see you again. How long will you be staying for?" The fellow ninja in the room seem almost shocked at the usually level headed Shinobi and Harry would almost hear the wheels turning in their heads, each wondering just what this stranger had done to their friend and fellow comrade.

Harry pouted cutely, gesturing for Kakashi to move so he could sit on the end of the bed before he rested himself on the foot end. "Be nice scarecrow. I haven't seen you in two years and this is the welcome I get? Mah and Naruto-kun was so excited too. Look at him now, all sad and moping, picking at the plant…"

Naruto was standing by the window, close to Asuma, inspecting the lone plant with a pout. He suddenly turned to Kakashi with _the_ saddest expression you could ever see on a child. "W-what…?" the Copy-nin started but Naruto interrupted him with a soft, miserable, whiny voice. "Why are you letting him die Kaka-sensei? If you needed someone to look after Mr Ukkie you should have said so. Both Shikamaru and Ino know how to deal with plants. Even Iruka-sensei…"

The only wizard in the room sighed softly. "I'm sure your sensei didn't do it on purpose Naruto-kun. Right scarecrow?" And he gestured for Naruto to come to him as Kakashi huffed. The blonde approached him with the dying plant and held it up to him. "It's not as bad as it looks Naruto, but you already know this. With some fresh water and some fertilizer, this little one will bloom again in a few weeks. For now though, place him in the sink with a little bit of water for him to soak up and Mr Ukkie will feel a little bit better." He ruffled through those sunny blonde locks, earning him a blush, and listened in amusement as Naruto left the room muttering about how disappointed he was and that Iruka-sensei would have never done something like this.

Suddenly he came back, running directly for Harry who caught him in a hug. "Thank you Ryuu nii-san." And he rushed out the room again. Harry chuckled as he watched the blonde leave for the last time. "You got a lot of making up to do with your student scarecrow."

"It wasn't my fault," Kakashi whined. "And stop calling me scarecrow!"

Harry grinned cheekily. "Sure Inu-_chan_." Kurenai chuckled while Gai laughed loudly. Asuma coughed as if he choked on his smoke. "Anyway, it was good meeting you all. I'm sure we'll see each other around Konoha at some point. Don't stay in bed too long Kakashi. You'll get stiff if you lie in bed to long at your age. See ya." And he hastily stepped out of the room as the Copy-nin tried to get out of his bed. His flight was followed by laughter and a smile creped onto his face. One thing he couldn't live with was seeing people sad or in pain. "Hey Naruto-kun, you ready for lunch?"

The blonde was standing in front of the sink, talking softly to the plant as he picked away the dead leaves. He perked up at the mention of lunch and Naruto soon joined him as Harry moved towards the door. "At least he looked okay," Naruto muttered as they stepped out of the apartment building. "But I can't believe he would let Mr Ukkie die like that."

Harry ruffled trough those blonde hairs. "You shouldn't be too hard on him Naruto-kun. Your sensei was injured, so he couldn't have taken good care of your plant. He didn't mean to let it die. Sometimes things just happen. It is the same as when we get injured during battle because our opponent is stronger. We are all misfits in an imperfect world."

Naruto frowned, looking up at him with confused, sky blue eyes. "What does that mean?"

"Don't worry about it," Harry said with a wink. "So is this the place?" The distraction was instant and soon Naruto had flung himself on the next person available. A tall, brown haired man who had a scar across his nose. His eyes were extremely kind and a great strength shone from within. So this must be… "This is Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, introducing the brown haired man. "He's way cooler then Kaka-sensei. He used to teach Sakura and me at the Academy. And the others too of course. Iruka-sensei, this is Ryuu nii-san. He came back with Ero-Sennin and me when we fought Orochimaru together with Tsunade baa-chan and Shizune nee-chan."

"I think you would want to start at the beginning for that story Naruto-kun," Iruka said with a smile. "Good to meet you Ryuu-san. Are you joining us for lunch?"

"I would love to," Harry said. "But I wouldn't want to interrupt your precious time together, even though I doubt the story will be told accurately with only Naruto-kun there." He winked at Naruto's indignant huff.

Iruka chuckled. "I'm sure we can spare another bowl for you, can't we Naruto-kun." Naruto beamed up at his teacher, clearly admiring the man that he was so accepting towards someone who only just arrived at the village. For most Shinobi foreigners were cause for suspicion, but it seemed that as long as Harry had Naruto to back him up he would have many allies here.

**A/N: It was really fun writing Kakashi and Harry's meeting; it was something I was really looking forwards to. Now it may seem like a pairing, but it's not. It will be more brotherly teasing between the two and besides Harry will be straight as I said in the beginning of the story and Kakashi's interests rest with someone else.**


	5. More then just a curse

**Chapter 4  
Training, healing and a little bit more then a curse**

"Hey Ryuu-kun…"

He breathed out deeply.

"Ryuu-kun…"

His eyebrow twitched.

"RYUU-KUN!"

"Damn it Pakkun-chan, I was trying to meditate!" Irritated green eyes focussed themselves on the small dog who was grinning sheepishly up at him.

"Sorry about that," the small dog said apologetically. "I thought you were asleep."

Harry looked at him with a deadpanned expression before sighing and standing, stretching and groaning in satisfaction when his spine popped. "Alright, let's hear it."

The week had gone slow and Harry had grown bored of sight seeing. There was only so much to see after all. Naruto had accompanied him everywhere, introducing him too all his friends and the sensei's before the blonde had complained about being bored too and proclaimed (loudly) the need to train. Now Harry and Naruto trained every morning so they had the afternoon to do whatever they wanted. Usually the blonde disappeared to check up on his teammates and sensei and Harry would do some magic training, only to be joined again by the blonde round dinner time.

Harry couldn't help but grow fond of the blonde. The energetic ball of sunshine reminded him of how he had been when he lived with the Dursley's (though he had not been as positive as the blonde). The need for attention, starved from human affection and lack of food. Harry had noticed it the moment he saw Naruto. The orange jumpsuit hid quite a bit, just like his own baggy clothes had done, but they could not hide the loneliness in his eyes.

Iruka, who Harry had grown fond of for being such an open person, had accepted Harry's kind offers to join them for dinner, something the orange loving blonde was very grateful for. Harry soon couldn't do anything wrong in the eyes of the blonde orphan who was almost living with the raven head wizard at his assigned apartment.

"Did you hear me Ryuu-kun?" Pakkun said with a sigh. Harry looked at the small dog with a dazed expression. He blinked and tilted his head slightly. "Sorry got a bit lost," he said apologetically with a sheepish grin and scowled when the small pug growled at him. "What? You interrupted me in my meditation! Be glad I wasn't trying to summon any nature energy. The result would have been quite _explosive_." The raven head chuckled at a memory of his training.

"Yes, well," Pakkun huffed. "Kakashi asked me to get you. It seems Naruto has been boasting about his training with you, so Kakashi wanted to compare notes."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Alright, where is he?"

The pug stood, wiggling his tail at some reason or another. "He was heading towards the hospital. Sasuke-kun is going to be released today and he wanted to do a team meeting."

"Alright," Harry said, turning to leave for the hospital when he realised he couldn't remember which training ground he was in and which direction the hospital was. "Uhm, lead the way."

Pakkun stared at him for a little bit before rolling on the ground laughing. "Yes, yes, now just lead the way already. I've got a bad feeling."

"Your mischief radar going off again," Pakkun asked, chuckling slightly and starting to run towards the hospital (or what Harry hoped to be the hospital, you never knew with the pug).

"More like my trouble radar," Harry muttered.

It seemed like they hadn't been that far away from the hospital at all and that was a good thing too. Sasuke and Naruto seemed to have been fighting and the pink haired Kunoichi had tried to interfere by jumping in between. Basically the stupidest thing you could do, especially with two not fully trained Shinobi. How Sakura had become a Kunoichi Harry didn't know, but he could tell that she hadn't been trained properly otherwise she would never have tried to jump in the middle of those two attacks. Unless she was suicidal of course.

For a moment Harry feared he would be too late, but Kakashi had been able to intervene just in time. Harry could feel the disappointment rise inside of him as he looked at Naruto, but quickly went to intercept the other dark haired child as he tried to escape. "I don't think so _sunshine_," Harry said as he grabbed the Uchiha by the collar and threw him back over the fence. "You are both responsible so let's talk this out and see if your teammate needs reassurance shall we?"

"Ryuu nii-" Naruto started, startled out of his thoughts when his dark haired teammate came flying back on the roof. He quickly stopped when Harry stared at him, clearly not amused. The blonde swallowed and had the decency to look ashamed. "Let's talk," Harry spoke calmly and tightened his grip on the Uchiha's collar. "You will stay and explain, tough guy or I will Stun you until you've calmed down. Now sit."

Harry 'helped' the dark haired child sit and kept him seated with a hand on his shoulders. He gestured for the other two to join them. "You want to do this scarecrow? They are your students after all," Harry called over his shoulder from where the silver haired Jounin had been conversing with Jiraiya.

"Who are you to tell me…" the Uchiha started, but Harry was not in the mood and hit the dark haired child over the head. "Be quiet and listen to your sensei or I will silence you as well. Now get that anger of yours under control before I loose my patience." Even Naruto stared at him wide eyed. The normally cheerful and upbeat Shinobi was replaced by a moody and annoyed teen.

"Now that's the Ryuu _I_ remember," Kakashi muttered, quickly joining his team and Harry while followed by the chuckles of Jiraiya. "Get lost pervert or I will let Tsunade-sama know that you've been trying to peek into the women's baths again."

"What's got your nickers in a twist," Jiraiya muttered and Harry could almost hear the pout.

"Someone's dog interrupted my meditation session and I saw two Shinobi-in-training nearly kill their teammate, who seems to suffer from suicidal tendencies." The whole of team seven flinched, though the Uchiha seemed less affected then the others. Harry clipped him again, just to let him know that he was being watched. Dark, angry eyes stared up at him, challenging him to do anything else. "Don't tempt me kid," Harry said, his voice neutral and his stare far more dangerous then Sasuke was used too. Something flickered in those eyes and the dark haired child turned his head defiantly.

"I can do this by myself you know," Kakashi muttered low enough for only Harry to hear, making the Wizard turned Shinobi raise an eyebrow. He gestured towards the silver haired Shinobi's students, but remained where he was. Being this close to the Uchiha, Harry could feel his fingers tingling with an unpleasant, dark feeling. It wasn't necessarily coming from the dark haired Shinobi-in-training himself. From what Harry could feel, it was a layer which was spread over the body of the last Uchiha. Like how he could cloak himself in magic, chakra and natural energy. Though this energy was clearly overtaking the child, pushing at his own chakra and forcefully mixing with it.

"Now that must be painful," Harry muttered, startling Kakashi out of his 'stern' talk. "Strip," the Wizard ordered, prinking Sasuke in the shoulder who turned around startled. "I'm not go-"

"Let's get you back to your room in the hospital then," Harry said with a serious look and he pulled the last Uchiha on his feet. "Naruto-kun, go get that pervert for me and you Sakura-san, get Tsunade-sama for me. Kakashi, follow me back to Sasuke-san room."

To say that they were startled by the order was an understatement, but with a quick look Naruto quickly left to find the Toad Sennin. Sakura seemed to want to protest, but Kakashi looked at her sharply before she fled the roof in search for Tsunade. "What is it?" Kakashi asked as they hurried through the hospital halls, this time without much restrained from the last Uchiha. Not that the child had much of a choice.

Harry pushed the Uchiha towards the bed. "Sit facing the wall and take that shirt off," the wizard ordered, quickly closing the curtains to block out the light. "I'm surprised you haven't come to your student's rescue yet Kakashi," Harry added with a raised eyebrow as he situated himself behind Sasuke. With the shirt off Harry could now clearly see the shimmering curse the boy was carrying with him. It is why he had closed the curtains. He would never have been able to see it in direct sunlight.

"I may find you annoying and frustrating at times," Kakashi said, standing guard by the door. "But I do trust you."

"Hmm," Harry muttered, pushing his magic into his hands before placing them on Sasuke's cold back. The dark haired Shinobi-in-training hissed softly and Harry felt him twitch. "Try to sit as still as you possibly can. This will be painful, but if this mark will continue to be on your person the curse will spread and eventually kill you. And trust me that will be a lot more painful."

"What if I don't want it removed," the Uchiha muttered.

"Then you are a fool," Harry stated. "If you think borrowed power will make you strong then you are wrong. I told Naruto this the first time we started training. We all have our own power, our own strength. Using borrowed power is like living on borrowed time. You can only last so long before it will corrupt and destroy you."

Sasuke huffed and moved as if he tried to leave, but Harry wouldn't have anything of it. "Now listen here dobe," he whispered dangerously pushing his full weight on the shoulders of the child in front of him who hissed in pain and frustration. "You may not believe it but you aren't the only one in this world who has ever lost a loved one. I've heard your story from your sensei as well as a few others and let me tell you that you've had a better life so far as most others have. The only one in your direct environment who knows nothing off loss, and probably hardship as well, is that pink haired Kunoichi with hearts in her eyes, but that will change soon enough. You may be the last Uchiha in this village but you aren't the only one who is the last of their line."

"I don't ca-"

"Than you are a fool for believing that," Harry interrupted, pushing his magic against the aggressive dark curse which seemed to spread from his shoulder as well as his head. "You've seen your parents, your family and friends from the entire Uchiha clan lying murdered in your house, in the streets. The entire Uchiha compound was stained with their blood and you're trying to tell me that you don't care? That you never loved your cousins, your aunts and uncles, your grandparents, that girl around the corner and the guy who lived close to the entrance of the compound. People you would see and talk to every single day. Your father and mother…"

"Don't you dare…" the Uchiha muttered, clearly trying very hard to keep control over his emotions.

"Oh I dare," Harry whispered, pushing against the edges of the curse. "I dare because I never knew my family. I had to struggle to stay sane and alive from a young age. When I was your age I had already faced death thrice and would again every year before my birthday. I was only fifteen, nearly sixteen when I lost my godfather, seeing him die right in front of me and trying to safe him but coming here in stead."

He saw Kakashi twitch at the door, but the Wizard just kept his focus on the boy in front of him who winced every now and again, but otherwise remained silent. Jiraiya silently entered trough the window, pushing the curtain away slightly and letting a strip of light fall on the two Shinobi on the bed. Naruto, who had followed his teacher into the room, gasped at the sight of an active curse mark but realised that he could not stay if he commented on anything which was happening in this room. The room went dark once more when the two let the curtain fall back into place.

"Check it Jiraiya," Harry muttered and the author of the _Icha Icha_ books came to stand next to him, peering trough the dark at the triangular mark. "You need to be precise," the Sennin whispered gesturing towards the pointed forms. "The bite mark has already vanished, but the Cursed Seal of Heaven needs a strong amount of force to supress. There is an extra protection layer as well. No one has been able to remove it yet."

"Someone tried to remove it before?"

"On a Kunoichi with the same Sealing. The best we could come up with was the Evil Sealing Method which Kakashi already applied," Jiraiya muttered and the silver haired Jounin quickly confirmed this. Harry nodded his thanks and Jiraiya moved back to stand behind him.

Harry sighed, pushing once more against the curse mark and feeling less resistance then he had before. "You remind me of someone I met on my first ever trip down the mountain," the Wizard muttered to Sasuke as he tried to remember the symbols of healing Jutsus the Toads had learned him. It was a shame he never learned Ancient Runes because he was sure he had seen Madam Pomfrey use them at times to heal severe injuries. Then again he wasn't certain if that kind of magic could heal Shinobi since their Chakra often interfered with his magic. "I was to observe civilians and Shinobi alike, how they interacted and observe their behaviour and mannerisms. The moment I went down the mountain for missions, I needed to know what kind of things I could expect."

It looked like Sasuke wanted to comment, but this time the dark haired child remained silent. Harry nodded. The kid did have some self control after all. He just lost it when his anger intensified because of the curse. "He even looked like you," Harry muttered, half in thought. "He was injured and his partner was trying to draw their attackers away so he could find shelter. It was almost the same way I met Kakashi, though the scarecrow was more then happy to accept some help. This man, however, did not. First thing he said when I approached was that I should go back to where ever it was I came from."

Jiraiya shifted, distracting Harry slightly who let a tiny bit of his control slip. "_Damnit_," he muttered, reverting back to his own language and quickly pushing some more magic to seal the hole in his walls around the curse. He had to keep the curse away from the head, cutting off the link it had created with the damage which was already in the brain. The damage to his brain had been there a lot longer and was influencing the seal for some reason. It might be fruitful to ask for the Uchiha's medical report. Harry might not be a professional Healer, but if he could mind walk through Sasuke's head there was a small possibility he could find the damage. Not that he trusted the medic-nin of Konoha of course… now where was he?

"How did the guy know you came from the Mountain Ryuu nii-san?" Naruto whispered and Harry pinpointed the blonde on his left side, close but not a hindrance.

"Ah yes," Harry chuckled remembering the annoyed eyes of the teen he helped that day. "But I do not believe he was revering to Mount Myouboku." Sasuke hissed as Harry send another wave of magic through the younger teen's body. "You're doing great Sasuke-san, just a few more minutes. _Where is our suicidal Kunoichi with Tsunade? She should be here by now_."

It was silent for a moment so Harry could find his balance back. Even if the dark haired teen was unstable the kid was controlling his emotions remarkably well at the moment. "It didn't bug me as much at the time, I was just trying to help him after all. So I told him that he could have it the easy way or the hard way. I swear he wanted to place me under a Genjutsu right there and then had he not been suffering from Chakra exhaustion." Harry chuckled again, ignoring the prickling of swear rolling down the side of his nose. "I Stunned him and dragged him to a cave near by. My control was still quite weak, so he woke up the moment I put him down. He made a right fool of himself, then again most people do when they are under thread from a Healer. I know I did everything in my power to escape the Hospital Wing every time I ended up there."

Jiraiya chuckled and Harry could hear Kakashi shift from his position by the door. Naruto had a hard time keeping still and even Sasuke twitched slightly trying to hide his emotions. Harry exhaled to steady his hands which were starting to cramp up slightly. "He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight*," Harry stated, sounding oddly like Hermione by reciting from a book. He wondered if she would show any pride in knowing that he had at least read one book she had recommended. "There is only one certainty and that is that we are born and that we will die. We may not be able to choose how and to whom we are born to but we can at least have some control over how we die."

At that moment there was a swift knock on the door and it opened almost immediately, probably nearly knocking Kakashi flat on the floor had he not been a Jounin. "Ah, backup has arrived Sasuke-san. Let's get this curse removed shall we." Harry moved his left hand so his thumb and index finger were placed in an L-shape around the triangular mark. His right thumb Harry pressed on the other side, careful not to accidentally touch the actual seal. Three light points lit up inside the individual seals. "Tsunade-sama, if you would please prick some needles in the curse mark. You may place your hand on my right shoulder and channel, if you will, some healing magic through my body and into the connection I have formed with the curse. This may be a little uncomfortable Sasuke-san. Naruto-kun if you could please step a little farther from the bed."

Harry could feel Naruto step away from the bed and Sasuke gave a tiny nod, trying his hardest not to tense up against the expected pain. "I'm taking a seat behind you Ryuu-kun," Tsunade said and not a second later he could feel her breasts pressed against his back. If he would have been anywhere else Harry would have blushed bright red, but he had other things on his mind. The Wizard breathed out and closed his eyes. Tsunade placed her hand on his right shoulder and started to conduct her Healing Chakra through his body. Harry had to focus, trying to lead the Healing Chakra to the contact point with Sasuke's body.

"Just a moment," he muttered when Tsunade started to move. "Nearly there. Get ready." Harry wasn't sure what would happen if Tsunade pushed in any of the needles before the Healing Chakra had reached its destination. He was going on instinct here, the same instinct which had brought them to Konoha a week or so ago. "Just a few more and… now!"

The three needles pierced the skin with the precision he had expected from the medic and the Healing Chakra was slipping smoothly into the tiny holes. The steel of the needles were doing their job as well, creating the trinity of protection while 'calling' for the Chakra. Harry could faintly hear Sasuke shouting out in agony, his two teammates whispering reassurances at the Uchiha but remaining where they were. Then a startled gasp from the ever present Shizune but Harry would not loose his concentration, even when three snakes bit themselves down into his flesh. One in his shoulder and the other two favouring an arm each.

Panic must have broken out inside of the little hospital room for there was suddenly a lot more movement. Harry had yet to move, fully focussed on the task ahead. He was prepared. "**You dare attack me?**" he hissed softly in Parseltongue, creating a direct link from where the fangs of the snakes had sunken into his flesh. "**You dare follow the imposter. The one who calls himself Orochimaru. He who does not even speak your language and orders you to obey.**"

"**Speaker**," the three serpents called in his head. "**Why does thou interfere in this world? Thou does not belong! Go back and leave us in peace!**"

"**I cannot**," Harry confessed feeling himself sink into, what felt like, a deep meditation but still conducting the Healing Chakra. "**I have long since accepted that I no longer belong there. I have died in that world. Everyone I knew has either died or moved on. I belong in the Shinobi world as I have proven many times already. The Toads have sent me down the Mountain to live once more. This is why I interfere. I have experienced this world for all but three years and I am grieved by what I see. Even here serpents have been marked as evil because of this Orochimaru. The man has been marked by Shinigami.**"

The snakes hissed at him in disbelief. "**It is true, I have felt his presence. My Magic has started to fuse with my Chakra, making what was once impossible, probable. I can feel the spirits as they restlessly roam this land. There are enough to build a spirit army. They cannot find peace as something more than Nature ties them to these lands.**"

"**But our Lord has ordered us-**"

Harry shook his head. "**Orochimaru has become Marked himself. He will be Judged soon enough! Now be gone sisters or I will push forward the poison of your ancestor which runs through my veins.**"

The result was almost instantaneous. The fangs in Harry's arms and shoulder disappeared, the needles were shot into the ceiling as the last burst of magic sealed the wound. The moment Tsunade's Healing Chakra was pushed out of his system Harry fainted.

…

It seemed that the release of the Cursed Seal of Heaven had taken much more out of Harry than he could have imagined. Until yesterday he had sported three bite marks and had suffered from severe exhaustion. Naruto hadn't left his side all day. While the Wizard had wanted to say that the blonde should visit his teammate instead of him, he really couldn't. The last Uchiha was resting next to him after all. The moment Harry regained consciousness Tsunade had asked (interrogated) him about how he had been able to remove the seal they had only know could be removed by Orochimaru himself.

"I noticed the shimmering of the Dark Chakra so I injected some of my magic into it. Got some data from that. To be quite honest it kind of felt like a marking I have only seen once before. I was never able to do anything with the Dark Mark, Hell I didn't even know it at the time that I could hear the hissing from it until the moment I heard it again. I knew I needed someone proficient in Healing Chakra who was skilled enough to possibly guide it through my body."

"So it was all intuition," Tsunade asked with an expression of utter surprise and horror.

Harry had shrugged his shoulders. "Basically, yeah."

After a full day and night Harry was allowed to leave the hospital on the promise that he would take it easy for at least another day. The day didn't go exactly as planned though.

Harry was meditating once more, trying to get his magical core to fuse better with his smaller Chakra reserves. Naruto was sitting next to him in a more relaxed meditation pose. The blonde was trying to understand the Kyuubi a little better. It seemed that they were getting more in sync ever since Harry had entered Naruto's mind. Harry heard the kid sigh a few more times before he broke out of his meditation. "All right, out with it."

Bright blue eyes snapped up in his direction, innocently asking what was wrong. "Don't give me that look blondie," Harry said, turning to face Naruto. "You've been sighing for the last fifteen minutes. I get that you have a lot of stamina and are a Chakra monster because you have a fuzz ball inside of you, but you can at least try."

"But we've been doing this for hours -" Harry raised an eyebrow "-an hour now Ryuu nii-san. Can't we do something else?" The blonde was bouncing in place. Before Harry could respond they were interrupted by three more people entering the training grounds. "There you are," Sakura said, quickly running the last few feet to stand in front of them with her hands on her hips. "We've been looking for you two all over Konoha. We were supposed to meet at the bridge."

"Yes but we were going to meet at this training ground anyway," Naruto said with a cheeky grin. "I convinced Ryuu nii-san to go here instead."

Kakashi looked at them with one visible raised eyebrow, his trusted book for once no where in sight. Sasuke had the strangest expression, one Harry was sure the Uchiha had never shown before. The anger had disappeared, though not completely because the damage on his brain was still there, but he appeared much more relaxed. He nodded at the two Shinobi and joined them on the ground. Sakura looked a little startled, but quickly joined to sit next to Naruto. "If you feel up to it, we can compare notes," Kakashi said.

Harry smirked a little in amusement. "Let's see how rusty you've become shall we?" Maybe Harry shouldn't be so confident in his abilities. Kakashi had the Sharingan and even though that Doujutsu could not copy any of his magical abilities, the scarecrow was still a retired ANBU. He had seen the man in action, fought along side him and healed his wounds. Even if Harry had a reckless streak and could fight against a Sennin and come out alive, he had just been in hospital for severe exhaustion. He didn't know if his magic was up for a friendly spar yet, but now would be as good a time as any.

The wizard stood and stretched, letting his shoulders pop back into place. Naruto was bouncing once more at the prospect of seeing both his teachers in action (even if Harry wasn't technically his teacher). Sakura sat up a little straighter and Sasuke showed his interest by schooling his features, but the little twitch around his lips showed that he was pleased. "Anything goes or are we getting some restrictions?" Harry asked standing on one side of the clearing.

"No weapons apart from training kunai and shuriken," Kakashi said quickly. "So you can put a stop to summoning that katana of yours. Any other summons are out of the question as well."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "You know I haven't got a summoning contract," the wizard said, surprised that Kakashi would forget something like that. "I should be saying something like that to you. You're allowed to use your Sharingan by the way, if you so wish."

"Thank you for the offer," Kakashi said with an eye smile while keeping his pose natural and relaxed, giving nothing away. "Sakura if you would be so kind as to give the signal." The Kunoichi blinked before nodding. "If you are ready?" she said hesitantly.

Harry closed his eyes, finding his centre. His pouch had a limited number of kunai and shuriken, there was some wire in there but they had not discussed the subject so he could not use that. Any techniques he had learned with the Toads could be used in combination with his own magical arsenal. "BEGIN!" Naruto yelled, but Harry didn't pay the blonde any attention even if he could hear Kakashi's eyebrow twitch from where he was standing near the river. The river…

"Start," Sakura said and Harry, snapping his eyes open, immediately raised his arms and brought them down in one striking motion. A summoned wave of river water soaked the Jounin to the bone, but the silver haired man was already moving out of the way. Harry dodged some shuriken send his way, quickly making a circle with his body, his right leg sweeping over the clearing floor nearly coming in contact with the wet Jounin. He raised his arms to intercept the kunai, taking Kakashi's arm and flinging him away.

The Jounin spun in the air, using the motion to dry himself enough for his Chidori. The ground around Harry was soaked with water, Hell even he was wet because the silver haired Jounin had used the direct attack to get some water on the raven haired wizard. Harry jump back before crouching low to the ground and raising an earth barrier just in time. Kakashi's attack crashed right through it but before Harry could send a Stunner his way the man had vanished.

Harry quickly checked his options, sending his magic through the ground below to sense for tremors in the earth. The Wizard shot himself into the air with a quick modified Levitation charm, narrowly missing the Water Dragon Bullet Technique. Maybe shooting himself up in the air without a broom to fly off on hadn't been such a good idea. Water suddenly surrounded him, forming a prison around his person. Before Kakashi could do anything else with the water prison Harry cast a freezing charm, leaving only a shimmer of water between himself and the ice. The ball of ice fell to the ground and shattered on impact, freeing the Wizard within. The water barrier falling away.

The wizard quickly dodged the Great Fireball Technique, realising too late that his magical core was getting exhausted again. It left him shivering in the cold, but being the stubborn Gryffindor that he was Harry flung two shuriken. While the first one was dodged the second one hit Kakashi in the back, expelling his clone with a puff of smoke. Harry quickly looked for a hiding spot within the trees, trying to catch his breath and wiping way the sweat which had started to prick in his eyes. The raven haired teen blinked, focusing his eyes on the clearing where the three Genin still sat, mouths slightly agape. Harry smiled. Maybe he should stick to Taijutsu for a bit so he could give his magical core a rest. He could still use his Chakra to enhance his speed.

Harry jumped down and away when the tree he had been recovering in started to fall. "What did that poor tree ever do to you, Kakashi-chan," Harry said with a pout as they both ended up on either side of the clearing again. The silver haired Jounin eye smiled and Harry, sending his chakra to his legs, quickly opened a Taijutsu attack when two certain medic-nin's entered their training grounds. Distracted by this, Kakashi launched the Wizard into the river. Harry, not really feeling like facing the Godaime and her apprentice, remained under water. He cast a bubble head charm and started to swim in the direction of the exit when someone grabbed him by the collar, successfully pulling the Wizard out of the water.

"Leaving so soon Ryuu-kun?" Shizune asked, her eyes narrowed at him frighteningly while Kakashi dumped him on dry land, the bubble head charm bursting on impact. Naruto was laughing loudly from the side lines and Harry saw Sakura giggle and Sasuke's mouth twitch in amusement. "What do you call this Ryuu-kun?" Tsunade asked, gesturing towards the training grounds.

"Uhm a demonstration of skill?" Harry said hesitantly with an innocent look.

"It seems that he needs some more rest Tsunade-sama," Shizune said, a dangerous look in her eyes which Harry knew only too well. "I think I'll take him back to the hospital so he cannot be disturbed."

Harry paled dramatically. "No not the hospital!" he cried out running towards the first person he could hide behind. "Kakashi-sempai please protect me from the evil medic-nin's. I promise I will teach you my new technique. Anything but the hospital."

"Mah, mah," Kakashi said with his hands raised defensively when the two medic's looked at the silver haired Jounin with narrowed eyes. "I'm sure it won't be too bad. Oh my, look at the time. That was it for today my sweet students. I have an appointment with Gai. I will see you tomorrow." And with that the man disappeared, leaving Harry completely open and vulnerable.

"Naruto-kun, help me!" he cried while running for his life.

…

**A/N: Tada! It took me sooo long to write this chapter, especially since I lost my way a little after chapter 3. Anyway, I'm back with this. I hope you liked it. I experimented a little with how to remove the Cursed Seal of Heaven and when to do this, especially since this means that Sasuke is fair game again. Three guesses who the stranger was in the forest ;)**

***This quote was of course from Sun Tzu's 'the Art of War'.**


	6. Too many people

**Chapter 5  
Too many people**

Harry was forcefully strapped down on to a hospital bed for another day before he was finally allowed out again. Naruto had already been waiting for him, finding the whole situation quite hilarious. How could someone who had fought alongside Kakashi-sensei, Ero-Sennin and Tsunade baa-chan be scared of hospitals? "It's not the hospital itself that scares me," Harry whined with a dramatic sigh. "It's the endless boredom of being secluded to a bed. I need to do stuff. All that sitting around doing nothing drives me insane."

Naruto chuckled as they walked through the halls of the accursed hospital. "Oh wait," the blonde suddenly said, turning back to a room they just passed. "I want you to meet Bushy Eyebrows! He's also still in hospital, but Tsunade baa-chan should be able to heal him." He pounded enthusiastically on the door before barging in. Harry rolled his eyes, wondering if he should have stopped the blonde before he barged in, but Naruto was already shouting happily at his friend that he wanted to introduce the dark haired Wizard. Said Wizard sighed, smirked and shook his head before entering the room.

Harry blinked before hiding his surprise at the sight before him. An almost perfect replica of Maito Gai, the man with the impressive eyebrows he had met at Kakashi's, was sitting on the hospital bed. If the older man hadn't been standing in the same room, Harry could have sworn the guy had been hit with a de-aging spell. Staring at the man who was leaning casually against the white walls of the hospital room Harry couldn't help but feel sad. There was a great misery there, like he had lost something or someone not too long ago.

The Jounin nodded at him with a small smile. It seemed that Gai was struggling with himself, so Harry nodded and winked before turning his attention to the two Genin. "It's good to meet you Lee-san," Harry said with a kind smile and a bow. "Naruto-kun has told me a lot about you. Someone with a will of iron like you must have great trouble waiting for Tsunade-sama to find the right treatment. I was here for only a day against my will and it drove me nuts."

"I still don't believe you were ever anything else Ryuu nii-san," Naruto said cheekily, grinning like the cheeky brat he is.

Harry rolled his eyes and glared playfully at the blonde. "Now, now Naruto-kun," the Wizard said sweetly. "I believe you are becoming cheekier. Maybe I should have Ramen by myself today."

Those bright blue eyes couldn't get any wider, that mouth not closer to the ground. "You'll catch flies if you keep that up," Harry said with an amused smirk. Lee smiled a true and honest smile, something which seemed to wipe the sadness out of Gai's eyes, and Harry felt the warmth in his chest spread. "I've got some tips and tricks for you when you've healed Lee-san. I was always injured when I was around your age so I know a fair bit about dealing with stiff joints and muscles after being healed. Don't give up," he added with a whisper and a wink. "This won't last much longer, I'm sure of it."

Lee frowned a little but otherwise didn't let anything show that he had heard Harry's words. "Thank you Ryuu-san," the mini-Gai said, looking grateful for something Harry still wasn't quite sure off. It sure wasn't for the tips. "I'll make sure to come and find you once the Godaime heals me."

"Well that's us," Harry said with a smile. "You staying here Naruto-kun or shall we go see Sasuke-san as well? I think he was here for another check-up." Naruto's eyes widened slightly before the infectious smile spread. "Oh can we?" Harry nodded and the blonde bounced to the bed, shook Lee's hand and wished him well before he ran out the door bidding both men a hasty goodbye. "And there he goes," Harry muttered with a fond smile. "Lee-san, Gai-san, I wish you well today. Don't forget to come by every once in a while."

"We will," Gai said with his tooth blinking smile and Lee nodded from the bed, clear admiration in his eyes. "And thank you, Ryuu-san."

"My pleasure," and with that Harry left the hospital room in search for Naruto, who had already rushed to his teammate's room. The raven head nodded and smiled charmingly to the nurses and medic-nin's who he passed in the corridors. This section of the hospital was usually only used by Shinobi wounded in battle or practice which was why you would usually only find specialised medic's here and hardly any civilians. This made it a lot easier to navigate through the hospital. You had check-up rooms first, and then long stay patients. The ICU was at the ground floor and the private rooms at the second floor.

"Hurry up Ryuu nii-san!" Naruto yelled from the end of the hallway, bouncing his way into the hospital room of his teammate. Harry smiled apologetically when a nurse passed him with a scowl on her pretty face. "Always the impatient ones," Harry said making his way leisurely to the hospital room. He frowned when he heard raised voices coming from the room and it wasn't Naruto's excited voice.

It was a strange scene Harry stumbled upon in the room. Naruto was standing by the wall, his head slightly bowed as if feeling ashamed. A civilian nurse was yelling at the blonde while the last Uchiha was sitting on the bed, eyes narrowed in annoyance. "- so leave us already you d-"

"And what, may I ask is going on in here?" Harry asked, taking on a defensive pose and radiating a little with power. The nurse turned to look at him, her eyes flashing with anger which quickly disappeared at the sight of the handsome raven head with his startling green eyes. The woman blushed and stuttered out some form of an apology, trying to rectify the situation with a charm which made Harry sick to the stomach. He had seen that kind of behaviour before in that boot licking man Lucius Malfoy when the man tried to suck up to the Minister. Or when the same Minister tried to charm the Headmaster in helping him.

Harry's eyes turned cold and hard, he could not stand those sorts of people. "I am merely wondering what you are doing in this part of the hospital," the raven head stated coldly, trying not to sneer at the nurse before him. She stiffened, her eyes slightly widening. "To my knowledge Uchiha Sasuke came here for a check-up and since this is a private room, no civilians are allowed in. I would suggest returning to your duties if you wish to keep your job."

The woman bowed deeply before the powerful man in front of her and turned to leave, but Harry stopped her at the last moment. "If I ever hear anyone raise their voice to Naruto-kun for any reason what so ever, I will end your career," he whispered menacingly. "Am I clear?" The nurse nodded quickly, paling dramatically. She left slightly shaken and dazed, but Harry spared her not another glance. Instead he focused himself on the last Uchiha who was sitting on the bed with ill concealed awe. "We have come to watch over you Sasuke-san."

The dark haired teen snorted and resisted to roll his eyes. "I can look after myself," Sasuke muttered, pouting slightly as he looked away.

Harry grinned, stepping closer to ruffle the boy's hair who swatted him away angrily. "Yes, we know," the raven head said, clearly enjoying himself and taking a seat on the bed. Naruto had yet to move away from his place by the wall, but Harry moved the bedside chair with his foot in an invitation. The blonde Shinobi looked a little dazed but accepted the chair. "We'd thought we would keep you company so we could kidnap you after the examination. We can all go for lunch together."

Sasuke huffed. "Lunch with the dobe means Ramen."

The blonde Shinobi finally snapped out of his daze. "But Ramen is the food of the Gods! How can you not want to eat Ramen?"

"Just because you will only eat Ramen, doesn't mean the rest of the world does," the dark haired Shinobi said to his teammate. "I prefer tea with Dango."

_That sounds familiar_, Harry thought. "I don't only eat Ramen," Naruto muttered getting a shocked look from the last Uchiha. It was amusing to watch the two young Shinobi interact like best friends. "Ryuu nii-san is really good at cooking and Iruka-sensei makes some great Sukiyaki."

"Well that is something you don't hear often," a new voice said from the window and the three Shinobi turned to see Kakashi sitting on the window ledge. "Couldn't you have used the door Kakashi-san," a medic-nin said from the door. Kakashi looked horrified at the idea. "Doors are evil," the former ANBU said.

Harry snorted at that. "You mean you like a dramatic entrance," the raven head said with a shake of the head.

"You should know Ryuu-_chan_," the silver haired Jounin said, fixing his annoyed gaze at the Wizard.

Said Wizard smirked slightly, an amused twinkle in his eyes. "Oh that I do, but so are windows if I remember correctly scarecrow."

"If I remember correctly I beat you 3 out of 4," Kakashi retaliated.

"That last one doesn't count since we were interrupted," Harry pouted. "And the score for draws is still 10 out of 18."

"Maybe we should do a rematch then to decide-" Kakashi was interrupted by the medic-nin. "Children, children this is a hospital not a playground." The older medic seemed amused by the playful bickering of the two adults. Naruto was looking at the two with a twinkle in those bright blue eyes and Sasuke had crossed his arms, looking away to conceal his smile.

Kakashi blushed slightly and Harry chuckled. He really liked the older Shinobi, taking pleasure at baiting the man every time he saw the silver haired Jounin. When they had been stuck together to complete Kakashi's mission of infiltrating a village in Mist country, they had come to rely on each other, balancing the weight of the horrors they saw. Bickering was their way of coping with everything they had seen in that little village. When Kakashi had to return to Konoha with his report he had asked if Harry wanted to return with him, but Harry had still been in training with the Toads and wasn't ready yet. They parted as good friends and the raven head had promised to visit as soon as he was released into the human world. In the two months they had been together they had shared a lot, even a sleeping bag when Harry had gotten hypothermia.

"So what's the verdict doc," Harry asked when the medic-nin stopped his examination of the last Uchiha. The medic smiled slightly. "I don't see any lingering side effect and when the Sharingan is activated there is no sign of the curse mark. Whatever you did, you removed it completely."

Harry nodded. "Good. Is he free to go?"

The medic-nin nodded. "Make sure you eat enough proteins Uchiha-san and before you know it you'll be feeling as good as new. Don't forget to check-out once you leave." He nodded his goodbyes and turned to leave. "Oh and Hatake-san, please lock the window when you leave."

…

Harry wasn't sure what to think of Anko. He met the Tokubetsu Jounin in front of training ground 44. Absolutely bored and not in the mood for civilised conversations, Harry had decided to wander the bits of nature which surrounded the city of Konoha. Most bits of nature were training grounds, but there was only one large enough (and dangerous enough) to settle his restlessness. Harry stared up at the immensely large trees, wondering if the creatures inside would be as dangerous as those in the Forbidden Forest back ho- at Hogwarts.

A strange longing filled him as the raven head stared at the darkness between the trees. The Gryffindor in him called out for adventure. He had been sitting still for far too long and even if he did like the company Naruto and his friends and teachers provided, sitting still had never been his cup of tea. He had been forced to sit still for ten years before entering Hogwarts. The Wizard had been given a second chance by fallen through the Veil and remerging on Mount Myouboku, he didn't want to waste it on sitting still at the first village he felt at home.

Harry blinked. _Home_… did this place really feel that way? It wasn't the same as Hogwarts. This place was so much more. The Wizard shook his head and laughed softly to himself. "More eh?" he whispered. "I would never have imagined there could be more."

With that thought he leaped over the fence which separated the rest of Konoha from the forest and entered the darkness within. Harry rushed between the trees, jumping over rocks and things, even a few abandoned traps. Kunai and Shuriken shone in the darkness and the dark haired Wizard wondered if he should go back to collect them, but decided against it. Most of them would be too embedded to be removed.

His senses grew sharper and he could almost sense the animals within the forest. A stream was nearby, its current swift until its bedding grew larger. Faint smells of human activities still lingered in those areas and bloodlust was embedded into the grounds of at least three clearings. Pushing Chakra to his feet, Harry ran up a tree and rested at the top. He startled a few birds into flight and the larger then life bugs moved back to the forest floor.

Harry let his bright green eyes wander the tops, sweeping past the tower which marked the middle of the forest. A growl was heard from down below and Harry peered down to see a large tiger standing below. The feline circled the tree once before leaning its front paws on the tree trunk. It yowled fiercely and Harry wondered if he should move when a set of Shuriken suddenly embedded into its fur. The raven head raised a surprised eyebrow, but shrugged it off. It was not his fight and if someone wanted to play with the large cat then it wasn't his business.

He ignored the call of the injured tiger and pushed himself away from the branch to jump to another tree. Jumping from one tree to another Harry felt the tension in his body leave and a smile played on his lips. Feeling like a monkey he did a few flicks and tricks, startling more birds into flight before slinging himself high enough to fly above the tree tops. Maybe he should have learned to become an Animagus when he still had the chance. Harry was almost positive he could have become a bird.

With a jump Harry let himself fall free towards the forest floor, closing his eyes for a second before doing a roll and landing with his knees bend to take the pressure. When he straightened the oddest woman stood before him, a manic grin on her face. "You must be quite flexible to pull of stunts like that," she said with a faint hiss. Her dark eyes glinted manically in the forest light. She was covered in a mesh bodysuit, giving away everything her body had to offer. Her long overcoat and short skirt did nothing to protect her dignity. Her legs were protected by guards and her Hitai-ate was mostly obscured by her messy dark hair. "Like what you see?"

Harry felt a slight blush creep up to his cheeks and thanked his lucky stars that the forest was dark. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to feel like when he watched the woman in front of him. Something told him that she was more insane then he would ever know. "Not sure yet," he replied with a shrug and he took a step in her direction so he could circle her. "You do realise that showing your body off like this is not attractive for everyone?"

"But the look on my enemy's face in priceless when they realise the lethal things I can do with this body," she said, stammering a little at first by being caught off guard.

"Hmm," Harry muttered, coming to a halt while standing behind her. Staring at her shoulder he got the same vibe off of her like when he had seen Sasuke for the first time. She turned to glare at him, probably realising that even if he was allowed to live in Konoha he could still attack her from behind. "You must have really liked him to let him do _that_ to you."

She stared to him, startled by the simple statement. "What makes you think it was voluntary?" she said in a whisper, to stunned to be angry.

"There's not as much anger and aggression, more regret and servitude," Harry stated. "Sasuke-san got his in battle and against his will. You got yours in a much different setting. Am I wrong?"

Brown eyes blinked rapidly and a great sadness seemed to come over the woman before him. "He was my teacher," she whispered. After a few seconds of silence she realised what she had said and seemed startled by the fact that she had actually mentioned it. "What is it to you anyway? Who are you to make comments like that?"

It was Harry's time to blink and he smiled apologetically, bowing slightly without taking his eyes of the woman before him. "How rude of me, I am sorry. My name is Ryuu. It is an honour to meet you my Lady."

The Jounin blushed and curtsied a little. "Mitarashi Anko," she said, a little stunned with the introduction. She didn't seem to know what to do with herself, so Harry took to asking a few questions at the interesting woman. "May I ask why you are here, Mitarashi-san?"

Anko blinked before shaking her head and taking a more comfortable pose. The fact that they were standing in the middle of a dangerous forest didn't seem to trouble both ninja at all. "I was following you," she stated, earning a raised eyebrow from Harry. "I figured that you were suicidal for coming here on your own. Didn't you read the sign?"

The raven head frowned. "Sorry, must have missed it," he said with a shrug. Even if he had seen it he probably wouldn't have been able to read most of it. He still had trouble figuring out most Kanji. "Anyway, there was no need to follow me," Harry continued. "I'm not suicidal or anything, just wanted something else to do. It seems that even here I can't escape human life."

Anko raised a rough eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean? What are you, a Hermit?"

Harry snorted. "Not at all. I just like my peace and quiet every now and again."

"Maybe you should take a holiday or something," the Jounin said jokingly.

The Wizard perked up at that. "That is not such a bad idea," the raven head muttered. "I could travel a little, take a map this time to mark some interesting places. I'm sure Tsunade-sama wouldn't mind."

Anko blinked. "Wait, wait, wait. I meant it as a joke. Besides, if you're a Shinobi of the village you can't just take a break. You can take a long term mission, but those usually come with a high risk level."

"Don't worry about that Mitarashi-san," Harry said with a smile. "I'm not a Shinobi of the village. I'm from Mount Myouboku, so technically the Hokage can't say where I go or give me a mission for that matter. Anyway Mitarashi-san, let me know if you want that curse removed. For now I'm off to the Hokage Tower. I should ask for a map while I'm there. I'm sure they wouldn't mind lending me one. Bye now." And with that he left behind a stunned Anko.

…

"But why?"

Naruto looked incredibly sad and Harry had to do everything in his power to not rush over to the blonde Shinobi and pull the kid into a hug. "Don't you like us anymore?" Harry caved when those big blue eyes became glassy with tears. He ruffled those beautiful sun-kissed hairs and planted a kiss on the child's head.

"Oh Naruto, it's not that I don't love you," he said softly, kneeling down so he could look into the young Shinobi's eyes. It looked like something a father would do for his child and the older Shinobi in the room turned their heads away. The only two looking were Sasuke and Sakura. "You may know a little about how I feel. When I was young I wasn't allowed to do much. I lived with my aunt and uncle who didn't like me for something I had no control over. I didn't even know why they hated me until I was eleven. Living with them was hard and looking back now I can safely say that I was treated worse then a slave at times in that household. I had no one to look out for me until I was blessed with two amazing friends. The school I went to was a special school, one I made my home. Even inside that school I was hated at times, but I still had ones I could call family. You understand this, don't you?"

Naruto nodded and Harry rubbed away the tears which threatened to fall. "The way I lived until I went to Mount Myouboku was filled with sadness and loneliness and even at school I sometimes felt that way. Now that I'm finally able to live here with a freedom to do whatever I want I feel restless. I want to see the world, experience all the things I never could before."

"But can't you do all that here?" Naruto whispered. The blonde was so desperate to keep Harry in his sight, it made Harry sad. Sometimes the raven head wanted to keep the blonde with him as well, but some things just needed to be done. Naruto needed to grow up so he could make his dream come true and Harry needed to live his life without worrying about others for once.

"Naruto," Harry whispered, leaving the suffix for what is was in favour for showing how much he cared for the blonde. "You and I are quite similar. We both want to prove to the world that we are worth something. You still have a long way to go before you can finally prove to the world that you are a worthy Hokage. When I came here I lost my dream, unable to defeat the man who killed my parents to get to me. From here I could not protect those I loved back in my world, but now that I am here I need to find something which will keep me going. I love you like a brother Naruto, so I promise you that I will come back. In the short time I have been here I have come to see the apartment we share as a home, somewhere I can return to whenever I feel like it and if your Hokage allows it I will continue to live there until the end of my days."

"Then why can't you stay now?"

"Because this is something I need to do," Harry said. Naruto finally gave in, nodding in defeat but hugging the older man close. "You better come back soon," the blonde muttered in Harry's neck. They stayed in the embrace until Jiraiya cleared his throat. Naruto frowned as he looked at the Toad Sennin. "You better delay returning if you are waiting for Naruto. The kid is coming with me for training."

"What?" Sasuke and Sakura said sharply, narrowing their eyes at the white haired Sannin. Tsunade nodded. "It will be better for Naruto to be on the road for a while and travelling with Jiraiya will guarantee his safety."

"Does that mean that Ryuu nii-san can travel with us?" Naruto said sounding a little excited about the idea.

"I'm afraid not kiddo," Harry said, ruffling those blonde locks once more. "You guys cause way too much trouble. Besides I'm sure Jiraiya will want to teach you a lot of cool new Jutsus. I might join you in the beginning and meet up with you at some point, but that's it."

Naruto pouted. "Meany."

"You hurt me kid," Jiraiya said with fake hurt. "Don't you want me to teach you some cool new tricks?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like tossing me off of a cliff to teach me how to summon Toads."

Harry narrowed his eyes at the white haired Sannin who crossed his arms. "Worked didn't it?" The raven head rolled his eyes before a thought struck him. "If Naruto leaves, what will happen to the rest of team Seven?"

Tsunade frowned a little and Kakashi straightened at the mention of his team. "Since Naruto will travel with Jiraiya, the team will be split up. I have a few jobs only Kakashi can do and Sakura has expressed the wish to study as a medic-nin. I have accepted her as an apprentice. Both Sasuke and Sakura will take mission with other teams until team Seven can become whole again. Why do you ask?"

"I think it would do Sasuke-san good to get out of the village for a while," Harry stated, startling the last Uchiha. Sakura looked ready to argue in her teammate's defence, but Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder. Tsunade frowned, gesturing for Harry to continue. "Especially since Orochimaru has shown an interest in Sasuke-san I think it would do well that he would travel. On the road he will be able to hide better then on his pedestal in this village. If Sasuke-san agrees then he can travel with me until we deem it safe for him to return."

The Godaime Hokage look thoughtful while the last Uchiha's expression was unreadable. The whole room seemed to hold its breath while they waited for a decision. "It sounds like a good idea," Tsunade finally agreed and the blonde woman turned to the last Uchiha. "It might do you good to travel a while unless you wish to remain within the village. The choice is yours Uchiha Sasuke."

**A/N: And cut! Oh I am evil to stop there. So, will our Sasuke join Harry on his travels or not? I was also trying to decide with what I wanted Harry to interfere. Now that Sasuke has not been kidnapper/taken (whatever you want to call it) by Orochimaru I have already eliminated a big part of the story. Sure there is still the threat of the Snake bastard but at least Sasuke is safe from a few others at the moment. The Akatsuki are a bit of a problem because I don't know what to do with certain members. Anyway, since Harry is going on a little holiday the next chapter will be a little interlude. I will do the Harry/Kakashi meeting and mission first. Let me know if you want me to do the Itachi/Harry meeting as well as any other people you would like Harry to meet. Ja ne!**


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